


cry, havoc

by sneck



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Brotherly Love, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Loki-centric, Not Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Odin's family squabbles come to Earth, Post-Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-27
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2019-07-18 05:45:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 22,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16112087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sneck/pseuds/sneck
Summary: What's left of Asgard escaped on the Statesman by the skin of their teeth, Ragnarok never came to pass, and Loki's just glad to be alive.  But Hela's on the warpath.  She's doing a welcome back tour of the Nine Realms and Earth is her final stop.Or: this time it's Thor's sister trying to take over the world.





	1. Chapter 1

Drifting through space on the Statesman, the people of Asgard found comfort where they could.  Even as they mourned their dead, they thanked the Norns for their continued survival, narrowly won as it had been.  The Goddess of Death was behind them now, stranded on their abandoned realm, and Ragnarok had been averted thanks to the heroism of the princes and their alien comrades.  More than four thousand Asgardians escaped alive and even this dreadfully small number was nothing short of miraculous.

In the privacy of his mind, Loki often wished that number had been even smaller.  Not that he truly regretted saving them—how could he when his own heart had shrunk back in horror at hearing the final tally?   Loki merely despised how he could not have a single blessed moment to himself on this ship, how every time he turned around there was yet another unwashed peasant looking to him for answers.  Being Asgard's savior had appeal in theory, but two months trapped in a tin can with the very people who expected him to save them had Loki revising his opinion.

It was a laughable situation he'd found himself in.  How quickly he'd gone from monster to a hero in their eyes.  All sins forgiven.  All wrongs righted.  All because he’d provided this blasted ship.  Ridiculous.

He ignored their hopeful gazes now as he tore through the ship’s narrow hallways.  He had to find his fool brother.  _His king_ , he thought with a sneer.  Some king he was, leading them all into the mouth of Hel.

After an hour of searching, he found Thor sitting alone in the cargo bay, staring gravely at a crate of rehydratable meat substitute.

“I heard a funny thing on the way to the galley today,” Loki said with clipped tones.  Thor looked up with a wince.  “Heimdall claimed that you’d given the order to continue on to Midgard, knowing full well that our _sister_ would be headed there, as well.”  Loki bared his teeth in a mock smile.  “What a comedian he’s become, our Heimdall.”

Thor ran fingers through the short bristles of his hair, a nervous habit he’d picked up after Sakaar.

“He wasn’t supposed to tell you.”

_And wasn’t that rich._

“No, why should he?” Loki drawled venomously.  “I’m only your brother.”

“I’m sorry,” Thor did not sound very sorry, though weariness showed in the sag of his shoulders.  “But nothing you could have said would have changed my mind.”

Loki valiantly did not stab his brother. 

“Thor.  Think about this for a moment.  You’ve heard Heimdall’s reports.  None of the Nine are safe.  Only Midgard and Jotunheim remain—she’s _taken_ all the rest.” 

Heimdall had begun seeing it a week into their journey: Hela, stranded on an empty Asgard, learning the secrets of the Tesseract.  The portal opening in Alfheim, Ljosalfgard falling, their elven Queen dead and Hela on her throne.  All that in the first week and it had only been the beginning.

Thor shook his head.  “No realm is safe for our people while Hela lives and every day she grows stronger.  She’ll hunt us down.  With the Tesseract and the resources of all Nine Realms, it would only be a matter of time.”

“That doesn’t mean we must make it easy for her by going to Earth!  Take us to any other planet.  We will go into hiding-“

“Loki, we cannot hide four thousand people.”

Loki threw his hands up.  “Then we run until we find a place that _is_ safe.”

Thor shook his head grimly, eyeing the food crates.  “Perhaps there is such a place.  Maybe we might find it in a year.  Or a hundred.  But we are not a space-faring people.  Sickness is spreading, we are short on food, everyone is afraid..." Thor ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "We can’t keep running.”

Loki raised an eyebrow.  " _I_ can.  I know it is not the _Asgardian_ way, but running has always served me well."

He said it mostly to get a rise out of Thor, but these days his brother was slow to anger and the look he gave Loki was resigned. 

“I’m not going to force you to stay.”

Well.  Fine.  That was.  Fine.

Yes, Loki could run away.  And why not?  He was good at it.  He hardly knew why he was here in the first place.  It had seemed so simple on Sakaar when his dear, oafish brother had turned the tables, left him writhing on the floor in the wake of a delightfully devious betrayal, only to go running off to his death when he'd finally become _interesting_.  What else could Loki do then but follow?  But now, with the worst behind them, the last thing he wanted to do was jump back into the fray. 

It would even be justified, he thought, to run this time.  His presence was neither wanted nor needed on Earth.  How easy it would be to take an escape pod, veil himself with magic, and wash his hands of this whole messy affair. 

Thor wouldn’t even try to stop him.

_(Our paths diverged a long time ago.)_

Loki looked away, unable to stomach his brother’s distant stare a second longer. 

“Thor, this is madness,” he tried one last time.

But Thor would not be moved.  “Out of all the Nine Realms, Midgard is the only one in our reach and her defenders are our strongest allies.  So it is Midgard where we will make our stand.”

“Take a pod and go to Midgard yourself then, if you’re so set on being a hero.  Go and save your precious humans.”

“And leave our people defenseless?”

“Better that than being led like pigs to the slaughter,” Loki sneered.

Thor’s jaw tightened.  “It won’t come to that.  I’ve thought this through.  I _have,_ ” he said when Loki snorted. “I would not risk our people lightly.”

“But you _would_ risk them.”

Thor closed his eye wearily.“We are going to Earth,” Thor said, tone final.  “My friends there will help us.”

Loki shook his head.  "You put a lot of faith in your humans."

Thor met his disbelieving look with a grin that fell short of reassuring.

"What choice do we have?  Everyone else is dead."

 

\---

 

Great cavernous cracks split open the ground, leaving only a wasteland of heaving, frozen rock as far as the eye could see.  It was a land ravaged by destruction, both ancient and new, and at the center lay the ruins of Utgard.

King-less and unsuspecting, the city fell quickly. 

Spires of ice crumbled and left the skyline bare.  Mountainous blue bodies fell upon blades black as death.  The ancient temple crashed to the ground with a roar, and through it all, snow fell in soft flurries from the sky.

Hela licked a snowflake from her lips with a happy sigh.

Jotunheim hadn’t remembered her, either, but that was just as well.  She would remind them, just like she had the others.  And when she was done here, it was on to Midgard.

Somewhere in the distance, Fenris howled with glee.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't abandon this story! I'm so so sorry for the delay. I was really not liking my own writing for a long time, but I'm getting back into it now, everything is fully outlined and I'm hoping to update regularly (weekly or biweekly) from now on. Things are starting off slowly, but they're going to pick up real soon, so I hope you stay tuned. ^^

In the end, they reached a compromise.  Between Loki and Heimdall, Thor agreed that the trip to Earth would be as brief as possible.  They would stop for as long as it took to restock their provisions, then Heimdall would pilot the ship and its precious cargo as far away from Hela’s warpath as possible.  Thor would stay behind to warn his shield companions and fight by their sides when Hela inevitably arrived to slaughter humanity.

“She won’t slaughter humanity,” Thor said, exasperated.  He, Loki and Heimdall were watching the final approach from the viewing bay.  “That’s the whole purpose of my going.  I will return when she’s been vanquished and it’s safe to go home.”

Loki glared at the little blue marble, the source of so many bad memories, and likely more yet to come.  “And you truly believe you can win this fight?  She was invincible two months ago, her power now must be limitless.”

Heimdall nodded gravely.  “She was able to conquer Jotenheim in a fortnight with no army.”

Loki snorted.  “Hardly a feat, in all fairness.  Jotenheim has been in turmoil for years.”  No need to mention that this was entirely Loki’s fault.  Shivering, he glanced down at his hands, looking for the slightest hint of blue but, as usual, found none.

Thor gave him a look halfway between reproach and sadness.  “Jotenheim is our neighbor and Asgard will send what aid it can once we defeat Hela.”

“I find your optimism baffling, given that the last time you fought her you barely got away with just the one eye.”

Thor scowled at him, touching his eyepatch self-consciously. 

Heimdall cleared his throat.  “It might be wise to err on the side of caution, my king.  While it’s true that Asgard’s safety lies in Hela’s defeat, you underestimate your role in Asgard’s future.  Your life is not something you can give so freely.  And facing her without a plan is reckless.”

 “Worry not, old friend.  I have no intention of dying anytime soon.” Thor laughed, but it sounded strained to Loki’s ears.  He clapped Heimdall on the shoulder.   “And I do have a plan!  Earth’s heroes are mighty.  I’ll gather up the old team, and Hela will be no match for our combined strength.  She thinks Midgard a planet of defenseless mortals—like you once did, brother.”  (Loki scoffed.)  “She will never see the Avengers coming.”

“Do you hear yourself?” Loki asked.  “This is your brilliant plan, your secret weapon?  _Five humans_.”

Thor wagged a finger.  “Not just five.  The team has expanded since last you saw them.  There’s even a witch now.  And a pink robot with an Infinity Stone in his forehead.”

Loki stared.  “A— _what_ —oh, never mind.”  He cut himself off with a shake of his head.  He must have heard wrong.  “Fine.  Who am I to stop you from throwing yourself head first into an early grave?  I assume you’re going alone?”

“Of course not.  Banner and the Valkyrie are coming with me.”

“I see.” 

Loki knew Banner would be leaving with Thor, but he shouldn’t have been surprised about Valkyrie.  Loki had nothing against her.  He’d also idolized the famed Valkyrior as a child (though perhaps not as much as Thor), and he found her tendency to tell bawdy jokes about Odin at mealtimes utterly delightful.  And yet Loki could not help resenting her place at Thor’s right hand, a place where Loki once stood.

“Heimdall will be in charge while I’m gone,” Thor continued.

And then there was that, as well.  Loki smiled, swallowing down a venomous retort.  So Thor was afraid Loki would steal the throne again.  It was a reasonable assumption and Loki couldn’t fault him for that.  So he wouldn’t.  He would take the insult with grace. 

“What am I to do, then?  Take up knitting?”  Perhaps not very much grace.

Thor sighed. 

Valkyrie leaned into the viewing room.  “Sorry to interrupt, _your Highness_ ,” Valkyrie said, making the title sound like an insult.  “You’re wanted on the bridge.  We’re entering Earth’s atmosphere in fifteen.”

“I’ll be right there,” Thor said.

Valkyrie nodded and when Thor’s back was turned, did some impressive eyebrow waggling at Heimdall, thumb pointed at Thor.  Heimdall didn’t react.  Valkyrie huffed and disappeared with a flick of her cobalt cape.

Thor turned to follow, but hesitated when he caught Loki’s eye.  “You know, we could use your help.  On Earth, that is.”

That was the last thing Loki expected him to say.  Did he want to go to Midgard where only death and the hatred of millions awaited him?  Absolutely not.  And yet the fact that Thor was asking at all eased something in Loki that he hadn’t realized needed easing.  He only wished he knew _why_ Thor was asking.  Did he genuinely want Loki by his side or was he merely desperate for firepower?

“I’ll think about it,” Loki said.

Thor’s face fell for only a moment before he gave a good-natured shrug.  “Well let me know what you decide.”  Then, with a smile and a stride too confident to not be deliberate, he disappeared to perform his kingly duties.  When he was gone, Heimdall frowned in his direction.

“You should go with him,” Heimdall said.

“Thor and the Valkyrie have this well in hand.  They hardly need me to tell them how to fly this thing.”

“Not to the bridge.  To Earth.”

Loki snorted.  “And why would I do that?”

Heimdall turned the full force of his eerie golden eyes on Loki, who was completely unprepared given that Heimdall generally carried out conversations while staring unblinking into the distance. 

“Two reasons.  First: You want to go.”

“Don’t be absurd.  The last thing I want to do is set foot on that-”

“Second: He needs you by his side.”

That put Loki off balance.  “I was of the impression that you despised me.”

Heimdall’s lips did something that was nearly a smile.  “Never.”

“Oh?”

“Mistrusted.  Disapproved of.  Challenged.  Opposed-“

“ _Alright, yes.”_

Now Heimdall smiled.  “But never despised.”

Loki looked away in disgust.  Heimdall had clearly gone senile in his old age.  But Loki would play along. “What makes you think Thor needs me?”

“He confides in no one.  He spends every moment tending to the people or to the ship.  He barely eats.  He doesn’t sleep.  Surely you’ve noticed.”

Of course he had.  He’d been trying to talk to Thor about it for months, but every time was brushed off.  Eventually Loki had let it go.  It wasn’t as if they spent much time together anyway.  It was as Heimdall said.  Thor only ever had time for being king.  He didn’t seem to know how to turn it off.

“You were king for a time,” Heimdall said.  “You could help him adjust.”

Loki felt his eyebrows crawl all the way up his forehead.  “You’re suggesting _I_ advise him on how to be king of Asgard?”

“Yes.”

“I had you charged with treason and chased out of the city in disgrace.”

“And I shall pay you back for that someday,” Heimdall said serenely, to Loki’s alarm.  “But under your leadership, Asgard prospered.  The people were content.  Don’t misunderstand—you made a terrible king.”

Loki scowled.

“But you understand what it is to rule.  The crown is too heavy a burden to bear alone.”

“Thor has always possessed a talent for lifting impossibly heavy things,” Loki dismissed with a wave of a hand.  “Besides, he’s hardly alone.  There’s not a soul that meets him and doesn't come to love him.”

“But is there a single soul in the universe who knows him as well as you?”

Once upon a time, Loki would have said ‘no’ with confidence.  Now he wasn’t so sure.  “The time when I had Thor’s ear is long past.  He holds me at arm’s length.  He doesn’t trust me.” 

 _“_ As well he shouldn’t.”

Loki smirked.  “That goes without saying.”

“Regardless, you should go,” Heimdall said.  “For your own sake, if not for his.  You will not be able to sit quietly by as Thor goes to meet his probable doom.”

“Why not?  I’ve done it before,” Loki said with a perfectly casual air, though the confirmation that even Heimdall thought Thor's chances of survival slim had put a hollow feeling in his chest.  

Heimdall raised his eyebrows and made a show of looking at the room around them.  “The proof that things have changed is right here beneath our feet.  Besides, you could use a confidant yourself.  And is there a single soul in the universe who knows _you_ better than Thor?”

“My, my, you’ve turned into quite the busybody with no gate to keep.”  Loki chuckled.  Him, confiding in Thor?  He’d sooner lay with a bilgesnipe.  

“It’s not only me,” Heimdall said.  “Even the Valkyrie is concerned.  She asked me to talk to you.”

“ _She_ did?”

“Her exact words were, ‘Tell that slimy assface to grow a pair and talk to his brother before I break them both over my knee.’”

Loki winced.  ‘Assface’ was not a word Loki had ever wanted to hear in Heimdall’s ancient voice.  “I thank you for your concern, Heimdall, but my brother and I are simply on different paths.  He doesn’t need me, especially not when he has so many friends on Earth less likely to stab him in the back.”

“Thor has many friends, that’s true,” Heimdall agreed.  “But he only has one brother.”

 _Not my brother_ , Loki would have said the last time he’d descended upon Earth with a shipful of aliens.  He didn’t think he could quite bring himself to say it again.

“I’ll think about it.”

Heimdall looked like he was going to say more, but his face suddenly took on the distant cast Loki knew to mean he was seeing beyond what was in front of him.  His serene expression morphed into one of alarm. 

“Oh Hel.  Brace yourself.”

Loki didn’t have time to respond before the floor was yanked out from under him and he was flung forward.  The whole ship shuddered violently and he could hear the distant screech of metal on metal and the not-so-distant wailing of alarms.  Loki pulled himself to his feet with difficulty as the floor began to tilt sideways.

“What happened?!”

Heimdall pulled him away and a dislodged metal panel crashed down onto the spot Loki had been standing.  “We hit something.  I should have seen it but-“  He jerked his head to the side.  “People are trapped in engineering.  Go to the king.”  And with that, he took off down the hall.

Vowing to put a snake in Heimdall’s underthings for presuming to give orders to a _prince_ , Loki ran in the opposite direction—to the bridge.  When he got there, he saw the Valkyrie at the helm, shouting orders to the handful of Asgardians with piloting experience that made up the crew.  Alarm indicators lit up the room like a disco.  At the front was Thor, bracing himself against the control panel.

Loki stumbled up beside him and scanned the information flashing on the screens.  Two engines unresponsive.  A third on fire.   Two of their thrusters were missing, along with several pieces of the undercarriage.  One of their remaining thrusters was stuck on full blast and sending them into a tailspin.  To make matters worse, Earth’s surface was so close that Loki might’ve been able to make out the leaves on the trees if they weren’t flying by at such a dizzying speed. 

“Are we under attack?”

Thor shook his head, pulling up a holographic display.  It showed a dome with thousands of heat signatures within.  “No.  We hit some manner of forcefield while we were looking for a place to land.”

Loki checked the viewports but there was no dome.  There was nothing but trees and mountains as far as the eye could see.  Trees that were beginning to brush the underside of their ship as they went careening past.

Valkyrie growled in frustration as the display indicated yet another engine failure.  “Whose stupid idea was it to land here anyway?!”

“Heimdall said this was the one place on Earth we’d be able to find the supplies we need!” Thor shouted over the alarms.  “He failed to mention-” Thor stumbled as the ship was rocked by an explosion.  Loki bid goodbye to engines five and six.

Everything around them rattled and outside Loki could see nothing but splintered wood as they crashed through the forest.   “I told you coming to Earth was a bad idea!”

Thor whirled on him, eyes wide with annoyance and barely suppressed panic.  “Is this _really_ the time-!“

“Odin’s wrinkled ball sack!” Valkyrie swore.  “Divert all power to shields!  We’re going down!”

\---

“Well that went well,” Loki said as he surveyed the wreckage.  The main hangar, being in the lowest level of the ship, had taken substantial damage.  Anything that hadn’t been welded down was scattered about in pieces, which unfortunately included a number of smaller parked ships that had helpfully exploded upon their destruction.  Thor was helping volunteers put out the fires and salvage what they could.

“Shut up,” Thor grumbled and pointed his hose at Loki, who neatly stepped out of reach of the spray of purple foam.  “If you’re fit enough to complain, you’re fit enough to help.”

“I’ve been helping.”  Loki wandered over to the gaping hole in the hangar where much of the wall and part of the floor had broken away.  Beyond it, he could see the forests of Midgard, green and lush with life.  The parts of it that weren’t on fire, anyway.  “We’ve just finished the final tally.  No fatalities.”

Thor sagged with relief.  “We should count ourselves lucky.”

“Not so lucky.  There are several in urgent need of medical attention and we’ve not enough healers to tend to them all.  And, let’s not forget, half our supplies just went up in flames and the ship is completely beyond repair.”

Thor dragged a hand across his face.  “Right.”  Shutting off the hose and tossing it aside, he walked to the edge of the hole and looked around.  The sky was barely visible through the trees, which were thick-trunked and several stories tall.  A long path of destruction had been carved out of the earth by their landing, the Statesman sitting at its end in a nest of broken trees and upturned soil.  Far from a stealthy entrance.  It wouldn’t be long until they were found, most likely by whatever group of Earthlings was hiding behind that cloaked forcefield.

“I will go to the humans for aid,” Thor sighed.  “If the nearby settlement refuses to help, I’ll send word to the Avengers.”

Loki scoffed.  “Are they your solution to every problem?”

“Do you have a better idea?”

Though Loki wanted nothing less than to cross paths with the Avengers again, even he had to admit they were short on options.  And unless the humans had another space-faring vessel capable of ferrying four thousand people across the cosmos lying around somewhere, the plan to leave Thor and the Nine Realms behind was also off the table. 

They were stranded.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry about the lateness. Disaster befell me last week and my computer completely died. Luckily, I now have a relative’s unwanted ipad, so I can still get this chapter out. Thanks again for your comments, you really keep me going!

They were still putting out the fires when they were approached by a delegation of humans.  They came on a disk-shaped vessel, far more elegant than the flimsy SHIELD aircrafts Loki remembered.  When they landed, a group of six female warriors—bald and carrying spears—filed out in formation around a lone man dressed in black.  His face was hidden by a mask that, Loki was amused to note, had little cat ears.

The man strode out in front of the assembled guard, confirming his status as leader.  “You have trespassed on Wakandan soil,” he called out. “Identify yourselves and state your intentions.”

Loki ducked away from the hole in the ship, not wanting to be spotted.  “Friend of yours?” he asked Thor. “Or do all humans wear themed masks and skin tight armor these days?”

Having no compunctions about being seen, Thor stuck half his body out of the ship to get a better look.  “I do not recognize him.  But I’ve never been to this part of Midgard, so perhaps it is the fashion here.”

“We know that your craft is not of this world,” the cat man was saying.  “If you can understand me, know that we mean you no harm. We only want to talk.”

Loki rolled his eyes.  What sort of naïve fool would fall for...

Predictably, Thor was readying himself to jump off the ledge.  Loki yanked him away by the arm. “Idiot! We have the advantage of surprise on our side.  Wait until they reveal their hand and-”

Thor gave him a doubtful look.  “There’s no need for such caution, brother.  The Earthlings are here to help.”

Loki ground his teeth together.  “And if they’re not? If they try to kill you?”

Thor shrugged.  “Then I will beat them to submission.”  

And before Loki could stop him, he leapt out of the ship and landed in a crouch near the humans, who turned with alarm and assumed a defensive formation.  Cat-ears held up a hand and his soldiers reluctantly fell back into a neutral stance.

Cursing his brother’s impatience, Loki shifted into the form of a magpie and flew after him.  Best to keep his identity hidden for now. He swooped in close enough to hear Thor say:

“-we mean you no harm, friends.  I have many times fought in defense of your planet.  I am Thor-”

“-God of Thunder,” the cat leader finished, shaking his head.  The helmet receded, revealing a smiling face. “You are not who we expected to find out here.”  He gestured at the Statesman and the surrounding destruction. “Nor, I think, did you expect to crash into our barrier.”

“Aye...” Thor glanced back at the ship and as he did, another piece fell off.  He winced. “My navigator told us of a place near here where we might refuel and barter for supplies.  He’s usually better at giving directions.”

“Forgive me, sire,” Heimdall said as he descended from the ship, Valkyrie and a handful of armed Sakaaran fighters trailing behind.  The red-garbed Earth warriors tensed but did not break rank. Valkyrie eyed them all with open hostility, but Heimdall’s expression was calm, as always.  “The cloaking technology here is far more advanced than I anticipated.  It is easy to be fooled if one is not looking for it.  For example,” he nodded toward the canopy.  “If I‘d not been paying attention, I might have missed the twelve fighter planes currently surrounding our ship.”

At this pronouncement, the Earth warriors stiffened.  The Sakaarans hefted their weapons threateningly (Loki noticed one holding a soldering iron, but if the humans mistook it for an alien laser gun, Loki wasn’t going to correct them).  

Thor scowled.  “Explain.”

The leader held up both hands.  “We were prepared to defend ourselves, but only if necessary.”  He glanced at the assembled warriors, eyes lingering on Miek and his knife-hands.  “Will it be necessary?”

“No, it won’t.”  Thor signaled to the others to relax.  Valkyrie removed her hand from the hilt of Dragonfang with a belligerent eye-roll.  “I give you my word as King of Asgard that we come in peace.”

The man’s chin lifted at that, his loose fighter’s stance resolving into something more regal.  “And I, T’Challa, give you my word as King of Wakanda that you and yours will come to no harm.” He held a finger to his ear.  “All units stand down.”

Loki flitted up higher into the trees to see the aforementioned hover planes appear out of thin air.  How novel.  If these humans possessed technology that could fool Heimdall’s eyes, even for a moment, perhaps they might actually pose a problem.  Diplomacy was not Thor's forte.  He would need Loki’s guiding hand.

Decided, he flew down and perched upon his brother’s shoulder with a chirp.  Thor jerked about in surprise.  He seemed confused for a moment, but then he took a good look at Loki’s plumage and sighed.

“Lo-”

Loki bit his ear.  Thor yelped. When he tried to swat him off, Loki flapped his wings, smacking his brother in the face, and dug his tiny, clawed toes into his bare shoulder.

“Ow!”

T’Challa was staring.  One of the warriors raised her eyebrows in silent judgement.  “Ah. Is this your...pet?” he asked with the careful air of someone who’d been trained in the delicate art of navigating cultural differences.

“No, this is-“ Thor tried to say until Loki pecked him.  He grit his teeth in a crude attempt at a smile. “This is—my familiar.  Not the same as a pet. Subtle difference.” Thor laughed unconvincingly, then shot Loki a look that he’d been giving his brother for centuries, one which usually meant something along the lines of _when mother and father aren’t looking, I’m going to make you pay dearly for that worm you just tricked me into eating._

“I see,” said T’Challa, though it was clear he didn’t.

“As I was about to say, we fled Asgard with little but the clothes on our backs.  The crash left us with many wounded and our supplies halved. We don’t have much to offer in return, but we are in desperate need of aid.”

Loki clucked his beak.  Thor shouldn’t have let on that they were desperate.

T’Challa nodded.  “How many people do you have on the ship?  And how many injured?”

Thor rattled off the numbers with weary resignation.  “That’s everyone. All that’s left of Asgard.”

T’Challa bowed his head in respect, eyes heavy with compassion.  Loki wondered if he was imagining his own kingdom reduced so. “Wakanda will provide what help we can.  I can have transport sent immediately.”

“My king,” one of the warriors broke rank to lean in close to T’Challa.  “With respect, you cannot bring them to the Golden City.  The Council will never allow it.”

T’Challa frowned.  “They are refugees in need, General.”   

“Four thousand _alien_ refugees.  It took months for you to convince the Council to open our doors to neighboring countries, what do you think they will say when you try to bring in outsiders from another planet?”

Thor’s shoulders were beginning to tense.  The fool probably hadn’t expected their alien nature to be an obstacle for the humans, a species whose only notable experiences with off-worlders had been hostile invasions.  Which Loki refused to feel even a little bit guilty about.

The General sized up their mismatched group with a cool glance.  “Four thousand super-powered aliens on Wakandan soil, possessing advanced weapons and technology?  The Council will see them as a threat, your majesty.”

Thor bristled, “We’re not a _threat_.”

Loki nipped his ear gently.   _Settle down_

Shooting his General a glance full of frustration, T’Challa sighed.  “I am sorry, but she’s right.”

Thor crossed his arms.  “You think us a danger to your people?  You doubt my word?”

“I don’t, no,” T’Challa said.  “But my voice is not the only one that matters.  I’m afraid I cannot promise you anything until I have spoken to my people.”

Thor had that mulish look that usually meant he was about to say something incredibly insensitive, so Loki _spoke_ to him, letting seidr carry his words.

_Mind your temper, oaf.  It’s to be expected. Allow the cat king to ease the minds of his people._

Thor frowned at him.  “How long will that take?  Our injured cannot wait.”

“I understand,” said T’Challa, thinking the question meant for him.  To his credit, his regret and frustration seemed genuine. “I do understand, but you must give me a few days to convince them.”

 _Look at the General’s face_ , said Loki _.  Either the king is lying or he’s being woefully optimistic.  It will take far longer than that._

“That’s too long,” Thor decided.  “We shall have to contact the Avengers, after all.”

T’Challa and his General shared a look.  “That may not be a good idea at this time,” the king said slowly.  “The situation in America is...complex.  We will of course send word to them, but...”

Loki would have snorted if he’d had a nose.  

_Midgardian politics.  How dull.  Forget all that for now—request an audience with their Council.  Name Banner as your human ambassador.  Then promise the king that we will leave as soon as our injured are well enough to travel.  That should move negotiations along._

After a moment’s hesitation, Thor surprised him by doing exactly as he was told.  T’Challa seemed to find the request acceptable and, after hearing the rest of the stipulations, even the General had no objections to bringing Thor and a few others into their precious “Golden City.”  

Thor stroked his feathers in gratitude, an indignity which Loki only allowed because it actually felt quite nice.

 

\---

 

It took a while to round up their “human ambassador.”  The last Loki had seen him, he’d been the Hulk and it was only luck that he’d transformed into puny Banner again.

Loki didn’t mind Banner.  Of all the humans he’d battled, he’d always found Banner’s personality the least repugnant.  He also had wit enough to keep up with Loki whenever he tried to explain magical theory, well past the point where Thor and Valkyrie’s eyes would glaze over.

The only problem with Banner, really, was the Hulk.  

They’d discovered early in their journey that Banner no longer had control over his transformation.  Now it seemed to happen completely at random, sometimes multiple times a day. (One memorable incident had involved the public toilets.  It had taken days to clean up the aftermath.)  Loki hoped he wouldn’t have another surprise metamorphosis during their meeting with the Wakandans--though he half wanted it to happen anyway, just to see the humans’ reactions.

Eventually Banner emerged from the ship, half-dressed, and blinking up at the forest with groggy comprehension.  

“How long was I out this time?”  He froze midway through buttoning his shirt.  “Hold on—is this—are we on Earth?”  He laughed in joyful disbelief.  Then did a double take and almost tripped over a root.  “Holy—what happened to the ship?  Oh my god. Did—did we crash? Is everyone okay? Thor, are you okay—why—why do you have that bird on your shoulder?”

Eventually they got Banner dressed and loaded up onto the circular aircraft—called the Royal Talon Fighter by the humans.  Heimdall and Valkyrie accompanied them as the king’s personal guard.  That left Korg in charge of security at the Statesman.  Allfathers help them.

The Golden City was not, as Loki had assumed, made of gold (having grown up on Asgard, he didn’t think it an unreasonable assumption).  Where the towers of New York had been an endless wash of gray, and the multicolored skyline of Sakaar a mishmash lacking in design and polish, the Wakandan capital seemed to glow brilliant in the midday sun.  Golden it was not, but this was clearly a place of economic prosperity.

After breaching the barrier, it was only minutes before they arrived at the royal palace where they were greeted by yet more stern female soldiers and the royal family.  At the sight of them, the young princess let loose a sound of elation that reminded Loki of a strangled goose. She then exploded in a barrage of questions and tried to coerce Thor and Banner into a “selfie,” at which point King T’Challa ushered her away with mumbled apologies.

The queen mother, a statuesque woman who radiated elegance, entertained them while they waited for the Council to convene.  They were shown around the palace, humble by Asgardian standards (but perhaps not by Earth’s, if the look of wide-eyed wonder on Banner’s face was any indication).  After about an hour, they were finally ushered into the throne room, where the king sat surrounded by his Council, four older humans who eyed their party with wary disdain.

“Outsiders” was the word of the day.  Loki got the impression that even if they _had_ been human, they might still be unwelcome because they weren’t Wakandan.  Banner, though also an outsider and a “walking time bomb,” according to the Council, had clout as a world-renowned scientist.  Despite all his whinging beforehand-

(“Uh, so I was still kinda out of it when I agreed to this, Thor—I don’t know the first thing about royalty—I don’t think I can-”

“You’ll be fine!  Just be yourself. Human...nonthreatening...”

“I’m serious!  I didn’t even know this place _existed_ until twenty minutes ago!”)

-it was his presence that put some of that distrust at ease.

“I know these people.  I spent months with them,” concluded Banner after an impassioned speech recounting what he’d witnessed of Asgard’s plight.  “Most of them aren’t warriors.  They’re families.  Children.  People who need help.  Please, at least hear them out.”

T’Challa nodded, addressing his Council.  “You have heard Dr. Banner’s testimony, and you know my opinion.  I know you are skeptical after the last time we allowed an outsider into Wakanda, but let us listen to King Thor’s request with an open mind.”

The Council members still seemed dubious, but nevertheless ceased their grumbling.  

“State your piece, King Thor,” said a woman with a head of red braids.

“Thank you,” Thor said gravely.  “It is as they said.  My people are in dire straits.  We’ve little to barter with at the moment, but…”

Loki tapped Thor’s ear with his beak.   _Asgard will remember your generosity.  Say it._

“...Asgard will remember your generosity.”

A man with an ornate disk embedded in his lip raised an eyebrow. “Are you proposing an alliance between Wakanda and Asgard?”

“Well…”

_Say yes!_

“Yes!  Yes, I am.  We shall be great allies.”  Thor smiled to mask his confusion.  He perhaps did not realize the extent of Earth’s fractiousness.  There was no unified government here. A _planet_ making an alliance with a _country_ was absurd, but if Thor wanted to emancipate Midgard from Asgardian subjugation and treat them as an equal, he’d have to start somewhere.

Thor spread out his hands.  “All we ask is medical care and provisions for four thousand.  We will leave your lands the moment our wounded are stable.  You have my word.”

The red-headed human scoffed.  “And why should we risk the safety of our people when you have given us no guarantee beyond your _word?”_

“It is not an unreasonable request,” said a different councilman.  “And we are not heartless.  But one Asgardian has more strength in his little finger than ten human men.  It’s a matter of security.”

_This is a fruitless avenue.  You can’t reassure them in this without giving them even more power over us.  So change the subject—propose a trade. Tempt these planet-bound mortals with our knowledge._

“We have little by way of riches, but if you should help us, we will give you access to the technology on our ship and teach you what we know.”  Thor gestured around the room.  “Obviously your kingdom is further along than the rest of the planet, but you’re not quite up to galactic standard yet.”

The three Council members shared a glance at that.  They were interested.  The fourth, an ancient looking woman whose wrinkled expression hadn’t changed since they entered the room, only continued to glare at them from where she was slumped in her seat.

“What sort of technology?” asked one of the men.

“We have the basics.”  Thor counted them off on his fingers.  “Blueprints for teleporters, fabricators, phasers, exosuits, stasis chambers, universal translator chips—and, obviously, spaceships.  You don’t already have spaceships, do you?”

“We have manned vessels that have the capacity to make it all the way to Saturn and back.”

Thor chuckled.  “If you think _that_ impressive, you should visit Alpha Centauri.  I hear it’s nice this time of year.”

Loki watched the excitement flash in their eyes with satisfaction.  He thought he saw T’Challa’s lips twitch.

The old woman spoke up for the first time, pointing her cane at Thor, “Tell us what supplies you need.”

 

\---

 

Banner blew out a relieved breath as soon as they were alone.  “There were at least three times back there where I thought the Other Guy was gonna come out.  He still might.  God, I hate this.  It’s worse than incontinence.  Do I look green to you?”

Thor chuckled and draped an arm around him.  “You were magnificent, my friend!”

_His frail, pathetic appearance certainly helped sell our sob story._

Thor smiled, “Even Loki agrees.”

Banner’s brows furrowed.  “Loki’s here?”

Thor nodded toward Loki, who preened from his perch on his brother’s shoulder.  Banner groaned.

"Loki has always excelled at negotiation," Thor boasted.  "In the old days when my hammer would get us into trouble, Loki's silver tongue would get us out of it."

_An unfortunate choice of words, but true._

Thor smiled at him.  "It was just like the old days, wasn't it?"

_Yes...like the old days._

Banner ran a hand over his eyes and mumbled, “Oh boy.  If anyone finds out, we’re gonna get deported sooner than you can say-”

“Ahoy, maties!”  

It was Princess Shuri.  She strode up to them, sporting an enormous grin, her amused brother close behind. By the doors, their supposed guards Heimdall and Valkyrie shrugged, as if to say, ‘What did you want us to do?  They’re royalty.’

“Is it true?  Do I get to play with alien technology?” Shuri asked.

“My sister is an inventor," T'Challa said fondly.  "The barrier was her design.”

That surprised Loki.  It was no small feat to shield an entire city.  He hadn’t expected the engineer to be so young.

“I’m sorry about your pirate ship,” said Shuri.  “I’ll personally make sure your people get the best treatment.  Though you might want to compare notes with our doctors first.  None of us have ever treated an Asgardian before.”

“Thank you,” said Thor.  “But you misunderstand—we’re not pirates.”

“It was just a joke.  Because, you know…”  She pointed at Thor’s eyepatch, then at Loki on his shoulder.  “You know? _”_

T’Challa shoved her lightly.  “Shuri, don’t be rude to our _royal_ guests.”

She rolled her eyes.  “Sorry.”

Thor laughed.  “It’s fine. I never cared for formality, either.”  Thor faced her brother and his expression sobered.  “King T’Challa, there is something I must speak to you about.”

Shuri turned to Banner and held out her arm for him to take.  “Would you like to see my lab, Dr. Banner? I’ve read your paper on neutral pion decay and I’ve always wanted to ask…”  Their voices faded as they left the room, giving the two kings some privacy.

_I know what you’re thinking, Thor, but you mustn’t tell them about Hela. They’ll think we brought her to their door.  Save it until you’ve spoken to your Avengers._

T’Challa asked, “What did you want to talk about?”

“I….”

_Remember, your duty is to Asgard.  No one else._

“I wanted to say...thank you for all your help.  Truly.”  Thor avoided the king’s gaze and watched the setting sun instead.  “Not many kings would show such kindness in the face of the unknown.  I would not have, in my youth.  Nor would my father.”

T’Challa’s voice was soft, regretful.  “My father wouldn’t, either.  He didn’t.  He made a choice—to either be a good man or a good king.”

Thor lowered his eyes.  “I’m still not sure I can make that choice.”

“I know that I can’t.”  T’Challa came to stand by Thor at the window.  He looked out at his kingdom with bright eyes.  “And I won’t.  How can any man stand above his people when he himself is unworthy of them?  How can they look to him for leadership when he cannot even look them in the eye without shame?  A good man _or_ a good king?  No.  I must strive to be both.”

The King of Wakanda stood tall, shoulders straight and strong, but Loki could see the weariness in him, the same weariness Thor had so desperately been trying to conceal.  In spite of it, T’Challa watched over his city with a full heart worn proudly on his sleeve—so much like a certain Captain.  He appeared so disgustingly noble and Thor so stupidly moved that Loki knew at once that his brother was going to tell him everything.

Sure enough, Thor turned to his fellow king and said, “The Earth is in great danger.”

“What?”

“Banner spoke of an evil being who massacred my people and chased us out of Asgard.  That being was Hela, the Goddess of Death. My sister.”

T’Challa’s eyes widened.  “That’s....”

“She wants to conquer the Nine Realms, as my father once did, and after that, the rest of the cosmos.  She’s a more powerful foe than any I’ve ever faced before and the true reason we came here.  We came to warn you.  And to fight her when she comes to subjugate Earth as its queen.”

T’Challa crossed his arms, mumbling something about colonizers.  He frowned at Thor.  “You neglected to mention this to the Council.”

Thor fidgeted.  “I’m telling you now.”

T’Challa’s eyes flashed.  “Answer me honestly. Will allowing your people to stay here put Wakanda in danger?”

Thor clenched his fists and nodded.  “If Hela finds out we’re here, she’ll hunt us down.  And kill everyone in her path.”

Loki could have slapped Thor.  Hours of negotiation wasted!  They should’ve just stolen an airship and taken their people to somewhere more hospitable.  Maybe Norway.

T’Challa stepped away, agitation stiffening his gait.  “You’ve made a target of my country.  Endangered my people.  The Council will be furious.”

“I’m sorry,” Thor looked away.  “If you would lend us transport, or call the Avengers for me, we can leave immediately.  We can go to America, or SHIELD, or…”

“No, you can’t.”  T’Challa gazed out at his city, at the people rushing below on their red dirt streets.  “Every single person on your ship is in violation of the Sokovia Accords.  The Avengers are compromised.  SHIELD is gone.”

Thor shook his head, uncomprehending.  “Compromised?  Gone?  What do you mean?”

Distracted by his thoughts, T’Challa ignored him.  “My duty is to Wakanda,” he said to himself.  The man contemplated his city in silence for a few more moments while Loki waited for the axe to fall.  To his surprise, though, T’Challa turned to Thor with a look of determination.

“Wakanda is on Earth,” said T'Challa.

“Uh, yes.”

“And you say the Earth is in danger?  Not America. Not any one nation but the entire planet, yes?”

Thor blinked.  “Yes.”

“And the threat level?”

“World-ending.”

T’Challa nodded, his lips twisted into a wry smirk.  “Then I guess I have no choice.  Who better to defend the planet than Wakanda?”

A grin spread over Thor’s face.  Loki was glad that his bird form could not give away his surprise.  But before they could celebrate, Princess Shuri and Banner came running into the room.

“Brother!  Something’s happening-!”

“Thor, you’ve gotta see-!”

T’Challa raised his hands.  “One at a time.  Shuri, what is it?”

Eyes wide, Shuri waved a hand above her wrist and pulled up a holo-screen.  “Just look.”

It was a news report, shaky footage shot from a helicopter.  The skyline was dreadfully familiar, grey and glinting in the pouring rain, and when the camera focused in on the rooftop of Stark Tower, Loki felt terror steal his breath.

“...this enormous black dog was sighted earlier this afternoon, following reports of a strange blue light in Midtown.  The NYPD advises...”

 

\---

 

Animal control.  That’s what Tony had been reduced to.  A glorified dog catcher.  Fucking Secretary Ross.

To top it all off, the mangy lab experiment—mutant sewer dog?  Regular dog bitten by a radioactive spider?—that was driving everyone into a frenzy happened to be chewing up the roof of Tony’s old digs.  Awesome.  

He knew he shouldn’t have sold the building to Osborn, that hack.  This had Oscorp written all over it.

Tony flew up to his old roof and whistled.

“Hey, Clifford!  Here, boy!  Want a treat?”

The dog—more of a wolf, actually—snarled at him, drool falling from its gigantic, gnashing jaws.  Nasty.  The thing was as big as a house and angrier than the Hulk on a bad day.  Okay, maybe not that angry, but it still looked pretty mad from where Tony was hovering.

“Okay, so my plan _was_ to muzzle you and turn you over to the Bronx Zoo, but I think we can all agree that’s probably not gonna cut it.”  

The wolf lunged forward with a bark that rattled the windows below.  Tony hovered safely out of the way.

“Okay, whatever.  I’ll just think of a Plan B.  Should only take a minute or ten.  You stay put, ‘kay, Scoob?”

Tony let the suit drift idly as he ran the possibilities through his mind.  Tranqs—worth a try, but not guaranteed to work.  Electrified net—more effective, but might kill the dog.  Also probably not big enough.  Sleeping gas…

He spotted movement out of the corner of his eye.  Shit.  There was a woman on the roof.  He should’ve caught that, should’ve done a scan.  He was getting complacent.

She stood with her back to him.  She was tall.  Slim.  Her ink black hair was dripping wet and she had to be frozen solid wearing that skin-tight bodysuit during a winter rainstorm.  She was also standing about twenty feet away from the giant, rabid wolf monster.

Tony approached slowly, putting himself between the two, which only seemed to enrage the animal further.

“Hey, lady, you alright?”

Her head tilted.

“Listen, I’m gonna get you out of here, but I need you to stay calm and...”

Slowly, she turned around.  The first thing Tony registered was her eyes.  Pale as death and somehow colder.  They raked over his armor with amusement.  But not the nice kind of amusement.  The other kind, the kind that said— _You are nothing.  You are a boy.  You are beneath me._

The second thing Tony noticed was what she held in her hands.  The device Thor had used to take Loki back to Asgard all those years ago.  And in its center…

The Tesseract.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoo boy. This chapter was like pulling teeth for me. Introducing Wakanda without spiraling into exposition and unnecessary scenes was weirdly difficult. That’s partly why it took so long.
> 
> But I really wanted to write a conversation between Thor and T’Challa. They have so much in common. They’re both warrior kings whose fathers just died. They were both lied to, they both have a smarter/snarkier sibling, they both had someone usurp their throne. Gah, I hope there’s some kind of interaction in End Game, because that could be SO interesting.
> 
> Stay tuned for the next chapter, hopefully in the next two weeks! Tony’s gonna have a bad day.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sigh* So I'm late again. And also sorry again. I'm trying, guys...
> 
> Anyway! Timeline stuff for this chapter: I changed it so that it's been 6 years since the first Avengers movie, not 8 or 9. That was kind of the assumed timeline before Homecoming added two more years, so I'm gonna go with that. 
> 
> ALSO, this takes place after the first (only?) season of Defenders. So there's some spoilers for the end of that show. Ignores everything that happened after (JJ and LC season 2 and DD season 3). The Defenders aren't going to be a huge part of this story, but I had a lot of fun with their cameo here. (And I didn't include Iron Fist because I haven't seen his show yet lol sorry.)

Spend six years preparing for one moment and everyone calls you crazy.  Maybe they have a point, maybe you even start to believe them (particularly when your single-minded obsession nearly caused the end of the world).  

But next thing you know, you’re staring that moment in its pale, red-lipped face and you start to think that six years really wasn’t enough time after all.  Give Tony a few more months and he could encase the Earth in an iron Kinder egg, or turn the Statue of Liberty into one of those anime mechs or-

Shit.  This wasn’t the time to lose it.  Tony _was_ ready.  Or at least that’s what he told himself.  Because what had it been for—risking everything, his team, his relationships, his sanity, just for this moment _—_ what was it all for if he wasn’t ready now that it counted?

_“Sir, your heart rate is elevated and your breathing-“_

“Not now, FRIDAY.”  

Tony wrenched his eyes away from the sickening glow of the Tesseract to pull up his HUD.  There were thousands of people in the building, and even more in the subway station below.  He could hyperventilate _after_ he did his damn job.  

“Protocol 249–-five block radius.”

_“Got it, boss.  Evacuation is underway.  All subway lines into Grand Central Terminal are currently being rerouted.”_

“Do the roads, too.”

_“The Mayor won’t be happy.”_

“I’ll make it up to him at the next charity thing.”  

Below, the woman caressed the cube with a smile, its blue light transforming her beautiful face into a ghoulish mask.

“The Tesseract remembers this place,” she said wonderingly.  God, she even _sounded_ like Loki.  Less waspish, less crazed, maybe, but the accent was the same.  “It wanted to come here.”

“Hey, about that—see, Earth’s closed for renovations.  We’ve, uh, got a hole in the ozone layer.” While he ran his mouth, Tony had the suit run a biometrics scan.  The readings were not human.

Tony rattled on, “Gotta save those polar bears.  You know how it is. But if you leave right now,” he put a hand over his heart. “I promise, I will personally send you an I-heart-NY t-shirt.  You’re a small, right?”

She didn’t seem to be listening, attention captured by the sights and sounds of the city—raised voices, honking horns.  (More like the sights and sounds of Tony cutting off traffic from 47th to 37th. The Mayor was going to _murder_ him.)

“Oh, I remember Midgard, too.”  Her tone was conversational, almost pleasant.  For a moment, Tony hoped he’d read this wrong. Tesseract or not, maybe she really was just some hot alien tourist.  Maybe this was all just some-

Wait.  ‘Midgard?’  Wasn’t that what Thor used to call Earth?

“I remember _humans_ ,” she chuckled.  “The last time I was here, you were all still crawling around in the mud, dying face down in your own piss at the slightest whiff of plague—the ones that made it through childbirth, anyway.  But now look at you!” She gestured grandly at Tony’s suit, then at the skyscrapers around them, grin wide and indulgent. It felt like an adult congratulating a toddler for going potty.

She shook her head with a laugh.  “You know, it’s funny—if I’d had my way back then, I would’ve razed this planet to the ground and turned it into a storage unit.  Or a landfill.”

“Right,” said Tony.

“But Odin wanted to give you a chance to evolve.”  She rolled her eyes. “I hate to admit it, but the old prick was right, for once.  Where would the fun be in conquering your world if there was no one left to give me a challenge?”

So definitely not a tourist then.

“I’m gonna ask you one more time,” Tony said, putting a bit more steel into his voice.  “Go back to where you came from and nobody gets hurt. But leave the cube. It’s not yours.”

The dog, which Tony had almost forgotten about, snarled and paced.  He stopped in his tracks when the woman tutted. In her hands, the Tesseract hummed.  

She regarded Tony with curiosity.  “It knows you.”

Tony shrugged.  “We’ve met.”

“But _we_ haven’t,” she tossed back her wet hair, chin raised high.  “I am Hela Odinsdottir. Queen of Asgard and ruler of the Nine Realms.”

Hela twisted the device in her hands and it folded into itself, rudely ignoring conservation of mass and becoming smaller than a hand’s width.  Logic said that the Tesseract should’ve been crushed, but Tony’s sensors told him it was still there, hidden inside the impossible device now clasped to Hela’s belt.

Tony swallowed several curses and said, “Figures you’d be Asgardian.  What do you want with Earth?”

“Are you the defender of this realm?” asked Hela, sounding bored.

“Yeah,” Tony snapped.  “One of many. Earth’s pretty well defended.  I’m gonna ask you again. What. Do. You. Want?”

Hela cocked her head to the side.  “Why, to subjugate this realm in the name of Asgard, of course.”

“This again?  Let me guess—you have an army?”

Her dark lips split in a grin, revealing perfect white teeth.  “I do, in fact. But I don’t think I’ll need them. As I recall, you humans once fell to your knees and worshipped us as gods without us even having to ask.”  She chuckled, casting a disdainful look over the Manhattan skyline. “You really were _made_ -”

“To be ruled?”  Tony finished with a snort.  “Yeah, hate to break it to you, Elphaba, but we already went through this whole song and dance with your baby brother.”

That seemed to surprise her. _“Really.”_  She waggled her fingers at her hair.  “Blonde? Beefy? A bit on the oafish side?”

“Uh, try tall, dark, and greasy.”

Eyes wide, she laughed, “Ha!  That one? Well if _that’s_ your idea of a threat, I should be through with your planet before dinner time.  Speaking of which…” She eyed Tony speculatively. “Fenris, poor thing, you haven’t had a bite in ages, have you?”

While the wolf—Fenris—howled his delight, Tony shut off the suit’s speakers.

“What’s the ETA on that evac?”

_“Approximately 58 minutes.”_

“The hell?!  Jesus, I can’t stall her all day.  What’s the hold up?”

_“It’s New York, sir.  The civilians are being...uncooperative.”_

“I should never have left Malibu,” Tony muttered.  “Get everyone out, I don’t care how. I’ll keep Hela busy.”

_“How are you planning on doing that?”_

“Like this.”  Tony switched his speakers back on and shouted, “Hey, Queen of the Night!”  And fired his repulsors right into Hela’s smirking face.

Or rather, at the spot her face had been.  Without blinking an eye, she sidestepped the blast and it missed her completely, taking a chunk out of the roof ledge.  

She was faster than Loki.  Faster than _Thor_.  Tony cursed colorfully.

Hela’s eyes glittered.  “I’d wondered if that suit was just for show.  Can it do anything else?”

Nanites enveloped his outstretched arm in the form of a laser canon.  “It’s your lucky day. I’m doing a free demonstration.”

Pupils narrowed to pinpricks, grin wide with an edge of madness, Hela swept her hands over her head, causing a helmet of sinister black horns to materialize, each deadly point turned in Tony’s direction.

“Look, Fenris.  Dinner _and_ a show.”

For a moment, Tony was overwhelmed by the feeling that he was _not_ ready.  Six years of planning hadn’t been anywhere near enough and now he was facing an alien invasion, fighting magic, without an escape, without backup, without his team-

Suddenly, he understood the fatal flaw in all of his plans.  In all those simulations, all those contingencies upon contingencies, Tony had never once planned on being alone.

But before the panic could truly set in, the wolf was charging and Tony was shouting, pulling out every single weapon in his arsenal and firing them all.

 

\---

 

Grand Central.  The second busiest train station in the country.  A buzzing beehive of tired tourists and nine-to-fivers, wanting nothing more than to go home.  Or nothing less. Hell, some didn’t have a home to go to. It’s the absence of home, Jessica Jones thought.  A place between destinations. The transition. Liminal.

God, that whiskey breakfast had been a bad idea.

Caught in her thoughts, she almost missed the moment The Target checked her phone.  A couple of tables over, The Target, one Isabella Kaufman, flushed red, glanced not-so-furtively over her shoulder, and hurriedly tapped a response.  

Another day, another cheating spouse.  Ah, the glamorous life of a P.I.

At least the Grand Central food court was a step above a wet fire escape.  Jessica’s jaw cracked on a huge yawn. When Mrs. Kaufman glanced in her direction, Jessica pretended to be watching TV.  The news was on--live footage of the Oscorp building.

She sat up.  Wasn’t that just outside?  Something about a dog on the loose?  A hoax, said the reporter. The guys at the bar were laughing about it, but Jessica flicked her eyes across the room.  The Grand Central military guards, looking a little less bored out of their minds than usual, spoke quietly into their radios, glancing every so often at the TV.

As Jessica waited for Mrs. Kaufman to make a move, she kept one eye on the soldiers.  They didn’t seem too worried, though they watched the TV with obvious anticipation. Now why were the guys with guns patrolling the sushi bar when all the action was upstairs?

Just as the question entered her head, she got her answer.  Iron Man himself zoomed into frame.

Jessica shrugged.  Whatever was going on, Stark would handle it.  Mutant Hulk dogs were not her jurisdiction. They weren’t Stark’s, either, but sometimes that’s how shit goes.  You try to do the right thing, lose all your friends, then get stuck playing errand boy. Jessica almost felt sorry for the rich bastard.

Well, not really.  But she knew a thing or two about being a boozed up asshole.  She could sort of relate.

Jessica abandoned her thoughts when Mrs. Kaufman finally got to her feet.  She noted her slight smile and flushed cheeks. It was show time.

But just as Jessica tried to follow, a piercing alarm blared out of every speaker in the food court, followed by a calm female voice.

_“Attention.  This is an evacuation.  Repeat. This is an evacuation.  Do not attempt to go outside. For your safety, please proceed to the nearest platform and board the shuttle…”_

Jessica pressed her hands against her ears, seeing others do the same.  “What the hell?!”

She looked to the soldiers, but they seemed just as confused as everyone else.

_“Atención.  Esta es una evacuación…”_

As the message looped, every screen in the room flashed the Stark logo, then began to scroll through a text version of the same thing.  The food court erupted in raised voices.

“Shut that fucking thing off!”

“Omigod omigod we’re gonna die!”

“Evacuation my ass.  I’ll have an avocado burger, medium rare-”

Jessica lost Mrs. Kaufman in the chaos.  She squeezed and cursed and shoved her way out of the food court and onto the main concourse.  It was a shit show, the alarms echoing off the high ceiling and marble walls. Mobs of red-faced commuters swarmed the information booth and ticket windows, shouting about how none of the trains or buses were running and the doors to the outside were locked.

By some miracle, Jessica managed to get eyes on Mrs. Kaufman again.  And happily for Jessica (though unhappily for Mr. Kaufman), she was locked in a passionate embrace with a man who was definitely not her husband and probably wasn’t a brother, what with all the tongue.

Jessica was just bringing up her camera to take the money shot when an enormous crash shook the room.  For one blessed moment, there was shocked silence, only the alarm ringing in her ears. Then came another crash, louder than the first.  Then another. It was coming from above.

As Jessica stared up at the vaulted ceiling in horror, a dark shape darted past the windows.  If that was the dog, it was bigger than a house.

She hadn’t been the only one looking.  Panic ripped through the station, everyone running for cover, shoving each other out of the way, tripping over luggage.  All while _something_ continued to bash in the roof.  A huge crack began to form in the ceiling.  And right above Mrs. Kaufman and her paramour, a chandelier was coming loose.

Without thinking, Jessica sprinted forward, shoving the two idiots out of the way just in time for the priceless chandelier to come crashing down.  Jessica caught it overhead, the weight making her knees buckle. Grunting, she heaved the thing onto the floor with an expensive sounding crash.

Everyone was staring.  Jessica scowled and pushed back her hair.

“What are you looking at?  This is an evacuation--get your asses to the platform!”

They scurried to obey.  Except for Mrs. Kaufman, who was looking at Jessica with wide eyed awe.

“You saved my life!  Oh my god, thank you.  Thank you!”

“Yeah, no problem,” Jessica muttered and tried to get away.

Mrs. Kaufman grabbed her arm.  “Wait! Where are you going?”

“Uh, the shuttle?”

“Aren’t you going to fight that--that thing?”  Mrs. Kaufman pointed to the roof, which was still trembling horribly.

Jessica’s face scrunched up.  “Why the hell would I do that?”

“Because,” Mrs. Kaufman sputtered.  “Well, because you’re a hero. You have to!  It’s your job to save us!”

Jessica yanked her arm out of the other woman’s grasp.  “I’m not a hero, okay? I’m an asshole with a drinking problem.  Bye.”

“But-”

“Mrs. Kaufman, seriously-”

Mrs. Kaufman’s eyes widened.  “How do you know my name? Are you...psychic?”

Jessica smiled.  “Yes, I am psychic.  And I predict that you have until the stroke of midnight to confess your affair to your husband, or...ravens will come and eat your eyeballs.  I have spoken.”

Leaving a pale and shaken Mrs. Kaufman behind, Jessica hurried to the nearest platform.  Instead of the 4 train, something much sleeker, much cleaner, with “STARK” emblazoned on the side in big obnoxious letters sat in the station.  It was already full. Jessica was swept away by the stampede of people, clamoring desperately for the doors. When they closed, the ones in front shouted and tried to rock the train.  The shuttle left (a female voice announcing that the next would come in _“approximately 30 seconds”_ ) and a fight broke out at the edge of the platform.

A police officer, young and nervous, tried to stop it and received an elbow to the face for her efforts.  The blow stunned her, knocking her back towards the empty track. Jessica sighed and went after her when she fell in.  Why couldn’t people just stay out of mortal peril for two minutes?

“Ah shit,” Jessica said as she landed on the tracks, the stench almost knocking her out.  “That’s...not good.”

“I-I can’t!”  The officer’s foot was trapped between the wooden planks.  She sobbed, “Just leave me! You have to--oh my god!”

And that was the sound of the next train, thundering down the tunnel.

Jessica knelt down and tried to pry the tracks apart.  She felt them give a little, but there was no time. God damn these insanely fast Stark trains.  Jessica left the cop and ran towards the approaching headlights. Maybe she could slow it down.

Time to see if she was more powerful than a locomotive.

She braced herself, held out her hands and-

_BAM!_

The impact shook every bone in her body, and probably fractured a few in her arms.  There was a warm presence at her back and she could feel the wooden planks splintering behind her calves as she was pushed backwards, one at a time.  But it was working. The train slowed until it finally came to a stop with a groan. Up on the platform, there was applause.

“They broke the fucking train!  How are we gonna get out of here now?”

“There’s like thirty more tracks in this station, dumbass!  Look, there’s another one over there...”

Jessica opened her eyes, not realizing she’d closed them.  Her hands were buried in the twisted metal of the train’s nose.  And above hers was a second pair. Large, familiar…

She spun around.  “Luke?!”

And there he was.  Luke Cage in the indestructible flesh.  Jessica swallowed, throat suddenly dry.

“Hey,” he said with an awkward smile.  “I just got here. I was stuck between stations for twenty minutes.  Saw the news on my phone, jumped out, and ran down the tracks to see if I could help.”

Jessica had so many questions, but what came out of her mouth was, “You get internet service down here?”

Luke’s smile softened.  “I missed you, too. Come on, let’s help the lady out.”

As Jessica and Luke used their combined strength to free the cop’s leg, Jessica filled him in on the situation.

“How many people are left in the station?” asked Luke.

“A few hundred probably.  And I overheard some cops say that the guys in Oscorp are refusing to leave.  Some corporate bullshit about protecting their assets.  The rest of the block's being cleared, too, but it's going slow.”

“Alright then,” Luke said and made for the exit.

Jessica followed him through the crumbling terminal, which was almost completely empty now.  “What do you mean ‘alright’? You can’t go out there. Don’t you remember what happened the last time we got mixed up in this crazy sci-fi crap?  Hey!” Jessica cut in front of Luke, who was trying to pry open the doors. “This is not our fight. The Avengers have it covered.”

Luke gave her that stupidly earnest look of his and said, “I don’t have to be an Avenger to know that if I wait around and do nothing when there’s people need saving, then I don’t deserve to be called a hero.”

Jessica scoffed.  “Nobody’s calling _me_ a hero.”

Luke raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms.  “I am. You gonna prove me wrong? Hero?”

Well when he put it like that...

With an almighty roll of her eyes, Jessica kicked the door off its hinges.  An unnatural howl tore through the winter rain.

She turned to Luke with a smirk, “You’re a dog person, right?”

 

\---

 

“How’s that evac, FRIDAY?” Tony grunted as he took a blow to the side.  Thank god it was only glancing. He’d learned the hard way that Hela’s weapons could cut through his suit.

_“Midtown is 60% clear.  A few good samaritans have been expediting the process.”_

“What’d I tell you?  You gotta have more faith in people--augh!”

_“Sir, you have a fractured rib.”_

“Thanks for the heads up,” Tony groaned.  Between Hela and the dog, Tony wasn’t sure how long he could hold out.

Hela strode across the roof of Grand Central, conjured spear in hand.  “Now this has been a fun diversion, but why don’t you come down from there and face me like a man?”

Tony’s only advantage was flight.  He would stay in the sky, thanks very much.  Tony fired his lasers at her, cursing when she deflected them and they went wide.  Spinning, she launched a barrage of projectiles at Tony.

He blasted them off course.  “Yeah, I can do that, too!”

Hela thrust her spear and it extended, up and up, faster than Tony could react.  It caught his shoulder, tearing straight through his armor and into his soft human parts.  With a shout, Tony blasted her off the roof. The spear fell away and crashed down onto the street, two stories tall.

Down below, there was screaming and gunshots.  Dammit, he told the cops to stay away. Tony flew down to street level and just glimpsed Hela smiling at a gathering of policemen before he had a face full of Fenris.  Aiming for the eyes, Tony fired his canons. The light seemed to hurt more than the actual blasts, and Fenris roared, shaking his head furiously. The enormous snout smacked Tony right into a parked car.  Its alarm blared in time with his concussion.

Fenris filled his vision and Tony willed his body to move.  His last thought before the beast was upon him was, ‘I hope I give you indigestion,’ but then he heard the best sound ever.

The whistle of guided missiles and Rhodey’s sweet, sweet voice in his ear singing, “Incoming!”

Twenty four missiles exploded in Fenris’ face.  It didn’t break the skin, but it stunned him long enough for Tony and Rhodey to knock him down the street and into a diner.

Tony could have kissed him.  He just might. He’d have to consult Pepper first.  And Rhodey, too. Consent was sexy.

Rhodey was giving him that Look.  Tony could sense it. “Uh, no thanks, man,” Rhodey said.  

Oh.  He’d said all that out loud.  “Suit yourself.”

“So.  What’s with the dog?”

Tony shook his head, trying to clear it.  “Don’t worry about the dog. Or, actually, do.  But worry _more_ about his owner.”  Tony couldn’t hear any gunshots coming from the direction he’d last seen her.  That wasn’t a good sign. “She’s Thor’s sister.”

Rhodey whistled.  “Another crazy Asgardian?”

“Yeah, but she makes Loki look like a kitten.”

“Good thing I brought _him_ then.”

Tony looked up in time to see Vision float into the alley.  “Rhodey.”

“Yeah?”

“You, me, and Pep.  Is there a word for a three way civil union?”

Rhodey snorted.  Vision shot him a quizzical look, then his attention was caught by something around the corner.  Eyes wide, Vision flew out of sight. Rhodey and Tony checked on Fenris, still struggling to untangle himself from the diner, before they followed.  Just around the corner were the smoldering ruins of a police barricade and…

Tony couldn’t look at the bodies.  Dammit!  He’d only turned his back for _one minute._

Furious, Rhodey advanced on Hela, who was uncharacteristically off her guard, staring at Vision in fascination.  Rhodey unloaded missile after missile into her. She stumbled from the impact but was otherwise unharmed.

Hela coughed, waving the smoke away, “Was that necessa-”

Snarling, Tony fired his canons.  Rhodey sent another volley of missiles, and Vision hit her with his beam.  It was the last one that seemed to actually cause her pain. She screamed, shielded herself with her cape and spun away, flinging blades out in the same fluid motion.  They scattered, trying to dodge, except for Vision, who let the weapons phase through his body.

Hela straightened, panting.  Despite the burns all over her face and arms, she smiled.  “Now _this_ is unexpected,” she crooned, watching Vision hungrily.  “Human ingenuity is truly something to behold.  Imagine!  Using the Mind Stone as a battery pack for a doll.”

As she talked, her burns healed until it was like they’d never happened.

She took a step towards Vision.  “Yes, you’ll be a fine addition to dad’s old treasure vault.”

Tony never really understood the whole Infinity Stone thing, but according to Thor they were weapons of unimaginable power.  And if Vision went down, Hela would take his gem.  Tony couldn't let that happen.  On the other hand, Vision might be the only one powerful enough to take her down.  But was it worth the risk?

“What’s the play?” asked Rhodey.

A few blocks down, Fenris howled, someone screamed, and Tony made his choice.

“You and Viz take the dog.  Keep it out of populated areas.  I’ll hold down the fort here.”

Vision’s brow furrowed.  “Facing her alone, you only have a 7% chance of success.  I should stay, you two should go.”

“I gotta agree with Viz here, Tony.”

Tony shook his head.  “I’ve got a plan. Just trust me on this, guys.”

After a moment’s hesitation, they nodded and, with obvious reluctance, flew off.  Great.  Now Tony just needed to come up with a plan.

Hela sighed, glancing over Tony’s shoulder to where Vision had gone.  “What a waste. You don’t even know how to use it.”

 _“Its_ name is Vision.  And he’s my friend.  You’re not touching him.”

Hela’s head lolled toward him and she drawled, “I’m bored of this game now.  Thanks for the entertainment, but it’s time I got to work.”

Tony blinked and she was in the air, flying at him like a rocket.  

_Jesus fuck-_

Tony propelled himself up higher but Hela slashed her arm and a row of black swords embedded themselves in the brick beside her.  She used them as steps, chasing him into the sky like gravity was a mere inconvenience. Tony changed directions, clearing the tallest buildings, but Hela only fired two metal spears from her hands into the roof of a building and extended them, propelling herself into the air the same way Tony did with his repulsors.  Except she was faster. Much faster.

High above the city, Hela finally caught up to him, tearing the faceplate off his helmet.  Her feral smile was inches from Tony’s face. He gasped for air, the rain and the wind blinding him.  The scent of blood and ash filled his nostrils. He tried to get away, but she had a grip on his throat.  He could feel her fingers sinking into the armor.

“Goodbye, metal man,” she purred.

“Not done yet,” Tony gasped and blasted her with the arc reactor.  She screamed and only gravity saved Tony from her wrath, pulling him out of close combat range and toward a plummeting death as the suit began to reboot.  Just a few more seconds and--two feet away from disaster, Tony’s thrusters sputtered on and he flung himself sideways, his momentum bringing him crashing onto the viaduct outside Grand Central.  

Pain exploded in his side.  Rolled onto his back, he started to laugh, just on the edge of hysteria.  The was where he landed after he fell from the portal six years ago. He’d hurt so much he couldn’t move then, either.  Watching Hela’s growing figure descend from the sky, Tony suddenly remembered Steve, sitting right there, telling him they’d won.  Tony wondered if he’d ever see him again.

Hela landed down the street with a deafening boom, a small crater beneath her feet.  She didn’t have a scratch on her. Tony tried to sit up, but the pain in his side made him cry out.  His rib fracture had upgraded to a break. Propped up on one elbow, he held up a shaking gauntlet, ready to give one last parting shot.

Hela summoned a claymore taller than she was and hurled it straight at Tony’s head.

Then a man in a blindingly yellow shirt dove in front of Tony and _punched_ the sword away.  

A petite woman in a leather jacket ran up to the man and shouted, “That was your plan?!  Ah shit, here she comes.”

The woman then picked up a car and hurled it at Hela, who sliced it in half without pausing her stride.  “Okay, there goes _my_ plan.  Now what?”

Tony pushed himself to his knees, biting back a cry of pain.  “I’m not even going to question this gift from the universe. Big guy, you keep her attention while Power Woman and I flank her.  I’ve got one more toy up my sleeve.” Tony flexed his wrist and a disk shaped grenade with enough concussive force to knock down a building flipped into his palm.

The man cracked his knuckles and nodded.  The woman touched his fist, brow furrowed with concern.

“Luke...your hand.”

Luke flexed it, showing off bloody knuckles.  “I don’t know what kind of magic metal that is, but it’s sharp.”  He squeezed her shoulder. “It’s okay, Jessica. Worry about yourself.”

Jessica’s face darkened and she nodded.  Tony didn’t know how to reassure her, so he didn’t try.  Cap had always done that part. God, he missed-

Before his concussed brain could take him down that path, Luke charged at Hela with a roar.  Hela sent knives his way, and they glanced off his body, covering him in shallow cuts but not skewering him like they would a normal person.  Hela abandoned that tactic and summoned a sword, taking an offensive stance.

While she was distracted, Tony flew to one side of the street, Jessica sprinting to the other.  Hela brought the sword down over Luke’s head, but he caught it with both hands. He tried to hold it up, but fell to his knees as Hela overpowered him, bringing her sword closer and closer to his face.

Jessica shouted and slammed her fists into the asphalt, sending cracks along the street and upsetting Hela’s footing.  Hela stumbled, giving Tony an opening. He shot the grenade, aiming for her neck--but it was intercepted by slender fingers.  Without even looking, she tossed the disk away and kicked Luke all the way down the street. Shit.

“Clear the area!” he shouted, bracing himself for the explosion.

Jessica swore and kicked the hose cap off a fire hydrant, momentarily disorienting Hela with the spray of water, before running to get Luke.  She didn’t see Hela winding up to fling a dagger at her back. Tony charged his gauntlet and-

Out of nowhere, a whip wrapped around Hela’s wrist.  

She twisted around, lip curled. “Who dares?”

At the other end of the whip was a masked man dressed head to toe in red leather.  Tony recognized him. It was the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen.

The Daredevil lashed out a second whip, trapping Hela’s other hand.  Sneering, she pulled on the restraints, dragging the vigilante towards her.  He let himself be pulled in, flipping over her and looping the cords over her chest and behind her back.  He pressed something and the slack in the whips--which turned out to be one long cord--constricted around Hela, trapping her arms.  She swung her head at him, and he dodged, inches from being impaled on her helmet’s horns. He wasn’t able to dodge her kick, but right as her foot made contact, he slipped Tony’s grenade onto her leg.  It started beeping.

Tony got the hell out of there.  The explosion blew Daredevil down the block like a skipping stone.  Tony flew after him.

“You alright?”

The Devil rolled to his feet, head cocked like a cat.  “Yeah. Better than you. No broken bones, anyway.”

Jessica ran up to them, Luke close behind.  “Matt?!” she gasped.

Luke stared, chest heaving.  “You’re alive?!”

Daredevil’s head snapped in Tony’s direction, then Jessica’s.  “Names!” he whispered harshly.

Jessica threw her hands up.  “Yeah, like you’re the only one in this city named Matt.”  She shoved him. “You couldn’t have sent a text or something?!”

Daredevil’s--Matt’s--shoulders hunched.  “I know. I’m--I’m sorry. I am. But we can talk about this later.”  Without turning his head, he pointed at the cloud of dust where Hela had exploded.  “She’s not hurt. She’s not even breathing hard.”

“And how do you know that?” asked Tony.

Matt ignored him, turning to Jessica and Luke, though his head still wasn’t exactly facing them.   “More importantly, there’s a lot of people who still haven’t evacuated the area.  Some are trapped in the rubble.  We should get them out. Let the Avengers handle this.”

Luke gestured at Tony.  “What Avengers? Uh, no offense, Mr. Stark.”

Tony sighed.  “He’s right. You should help as many civilians as you can.  They’re the priority here.”

Matt smiled.  “Trust me. Help’s on the way.”  With that, he flipped off the edge of the viaduct and disappeared from sight.

Tony turned to Jessica.  “So what’s his deal?  BDSM ninja assassin?”

“Catholic,” she said wryly.

“Huh,” said Tony, watching them go.  Well, the good news was if he bit it today, New York would be in good hands.  Not that he was planning on dying, but he was having trouble seeing another outcome to this fight.

Unscathed, Hela approached him with a smirk twisting her smudged lips.  Her helmet was gone, and her makeup and hair were a mess, making her look even more crazed.  The rain was coming down in sheets, lightning tearing through the sky.

She clicked her tongue.  “Alone again? You just can’t seem to hold on to your friends, can you?”

With a flick of his fingers, Tony had the nanites reassembling the suit and felt comfort wash over him as his faceplate reformed.  The bots had entered his blood stream and were numbing the pain.  Now he was ready to go again. But just as he was about to pull out his last resort, the universe decided to surprise him one more time.

“I’ll grant you this, mortal,” Hela shouted, and Tony could barely hear her over the thunder.  “You put up a good fight. I don’t say that often, so you should be honored.”

Smirking, Hela fanned her fingers and summoned an executioner’s axe.  She raised it to the sky and-

_BOOM!_

Lighting crashed down from the heavens, blasting Hela off her feet.  Tony might have gone deaf from the thunder clap, but he didn’t care how bad his ears were ringing, because standing in front of him, hair short and wearing an eyepatch, was Thor.

“Thor,” Tony stumbled forward, not quite believing his own eyes.   _“Thor_.  You’re actually here.”

Thor smiled and--yeah, there was no mistaking that goofy grin.  “It is good to see you, too, my friend.”

“Your timing’s amazing.  Seriously, I could kiss you.  I’ll have to consult Pepper first, though.”

Thor chuckled and the sound was like another long lost friend.  Tony hadn’t realized how much he’d missed this. But they could catch up later.  Hela was already up, singed but healing.  And she looked delighted.

“Odinson,” she cried.  “And here I thought I was going to have to hunt you all across the galaxy.  Thank you for saving me the trouble.”

“I won’t let you do to Earth what you did to Asgard,” promised Thor.  He turned to Tony and there was a hardness in his eyes that hadn’t been there the last time they’d spoken.  “Are you ready for another bout, Stark?”

Tony fired up his repulsors, confident now that he had a teammate to watch his back.

“Let’s get to work.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The second battle of New York continues! I didn't think I could find a character that was more fun to write than Tony, but then Jessica came along. God, I love her.
> 
> Sorry for the lack of Loki in this chapter, we'll be back to his POV in the next one. Man, it's crazy to think that the next time we meet, it will be in a post-Endgame world. I'm not ready. Six years WASN'T enough. Stay strong, fam. <3


	5. Chapter 5

 

**One hour earlier.**

 

The Wakandan King had lent them the Royal Talon Fighter and his General, Okoye, who’d looked less than pleased to be saddled with the job of piloting a bunch of aliens across the ocean.  On route to America, Valkyrie paced the ship, grip so tight on the hilt of her sword Loki could hear the leather creak.  And the Hulk, who had transformed as they were taking off, napped in the corner, curled up awkwardly in the too-small space.  Loki caught Okoye sneaking perturbed glances at him every few minutes.

Heimdall had stayed behind.  They all agreed that if this went badly, someone had to remain to protect Asgard.  Moreover, under no circumstances could they allow Hela to get her hands on the Bifrost sword.  Though she could teleport herself and Fenris with the Tesseract, she was still unable to get her vast army of the undead off of Asgard and if that should change, it would spell disaster for the whole universe.

“Can’t this hunk of junk go any faster?” grumbled Valkyrie, kicking a state of the art particle projector and leaving a dent.

Okoye gave her a withering look.  “No other plane on the planet could get you there faster.  Now sit down before I make you.”

“Yeah?  You wanna go?  Come on, you-”

Thor jumped in between them.  “She’s joking! We’re going to sit down now.”  Thor directed the last part at Valkyrie with a pointed look.  She scowled, sent one last glare Okoye’s way, and stalked to her seat, cursing “bloody Terrans” under her breath.

Without taking her eyes off her instruments, Okoye said, “We will get there in time.  Do not worry about your friends.  They are strong.”

Thor smiled.  “I know that. I’m not worried.”

Okoye’s brow wrinkled.  “I was just trying to comfort you.  If you are not worried, then you are a fool.”

She turned back to her controls, leaving a flustered Thor to wander away to his seat.  Loki rode on his shoulder and wished he could enjoy the moment.  Witnessing Thor’s boundless arrogance put in check was a rarer event than summer in Niflheim, but Loki could barely think past what was waiting for them on the other side of the ocean.

All too soon, they were approaching the American coast.  Thor waited by the doors, ready to jump out when they opened.  He appeared calm, but the crashing thunder outside told a different story.

“Loki,” Thor whispered. “How long are you going to hide in that form?”

Loki remained silent.  He hadn’t said a thing since the decision was made to help the Avengers in New York.  He’d been furious with Thor for not consulting him first.  If he had, Loki would have told him to cut his loses and regroup with the survivors when they had a real plan of action.  This was suicide.  Loki may have been willing to die for Asgard, but for a group of lowly mortals that he despised?  Thor truly was a fool if he thought Loki would follow him in this.

Hand braced on the plane’s wall, Thor hung his head.  It was a posture Loki recognized from their youth.  When Thor was feeling vulnerable and didn’t want to show it, he would hide behind his curtain of golden hair, concealing his weakness.  Loki, being a much better liar than that, ever preferred his own hair slicked back, inviting people to see the mask he’d so masterfully crafted.

His brother, on the other hand, had never grown out of the boyish habit.  Except now the long locks were gone and Thor’s troubled expression was laid bare for Loki to see.

Thor pitched his voice low so that none but they could hear.  “This could well be the last battle I ever fight.  And if that’s to be the case… I don’t want to face it alone.”  Thor shook his head and, almost shamefully, confessed, “I know that I am not alone but… I feel as though I am.”

Loki had never known his brother to feel lonely.  All their lives, he’d always had the love of his friends and admirers, their parents.  

But they were all dust now.  All but Loki.

Loki tried to avoid Thor’s eye, but couldn’t manage it when his brother gently lifted him from his shoulder and held him in his cupped hands.  How strange to be held thus, like something precious and fragile.  How many times had Loki been cast aside by these very hands?  How often had those hands felt like shackles, chaining him to the shadow of his big-headed brute of a brother?  Loki stared up at Thor’s sadly smiling face and wondered where that arrogant boy had gone.

Thor brought him up to eye level.  “I, more than anyone, know how unwise it would be to trust you again.  But, Loki, a part of me cannot help but hope that one day things will be as they were.”  He gave a shaky chuckle.  “Perhaps not exactly as they were, but…  Do you remember when you snuck us into Hreidmar’s Hall on Nidavelier when we were children?  You’d wanted to read his scrolls and I’d wanted a see his famed weapons.  When we were caught, we thought the dwarves would sew our lips shut and cut off our heads, like in the stories.  As we ran from the guards, we could have split up to give one of us a better chance at escape.  But neither of us wanted to, fearing it would be the last time we saw each other.  Together to the end, we said.”  

Thor gazed at Loki with such mournful longing that Loki couldn’t bare to look at him another second.  “I said on Sakaar that I once thought we would fight side by side forever.  And brother, I still wish it so.  Do you… do you think we could be that way again?”

Loki didn’t want to stand here and listen to Thor’s voice waver.  He didn’t want to have to bear witness to this ill-fated optimism.  Didn’t Thor understand that there _was_ no going back?  It was too late!  They were both too late.  Loki ought to lash out with his beak, scratch Thor’s eye out, teach him once more that Loki wasn’t to be trusted, and maybe the lesson would stick this time.   Loki ought to blind him.  He ought to-

Loki had been wrong.  Those months on the Statesman, Loki had thought he’d coveted his brother’s trust.  But now the possibility of having it again only filled him with fear and the absolute certainty that he would one day betray it.  

Loki wasn’t precious or fragile.  

He was a snake.  And Thor was a fool.

“Please, brother,” croaked Thor as the plane’s doors opened, letting in a spray of freezing rain.  “I need you by my side.”

Loki took flight.  The last thing he saw before he dove into the clouds was the crushed expression on his brother’s face.

 

\---

 

**Now.**

 

Tony fired a beam at Hela, suit humming with Thor’s lightning power boost.  “Have I told you how great it is to have you back?”

Thor grunted as he parried Hela’s strikes with one of her discarded black swords.  “You mentioned it a couple of times.”

He summoned a lightning strike, which she dodged.  When Hela leapt out of sight, Tony moved to cover Thor’s back, ready for an ambush.

“So,” Tony ventured as FRIDAY tracked Hela’s heat signature.  “You’ve got a sister, huh?”

Thor sighed.  “It’s a long story.”

“This one a god, too?”

“Goddess, actually, and yes.”

“What of?”

“Death,” said Thor, matter-of-fact.

Tony could feel a migraine coming on.  “Remind me to have a talk with you about bringing your murderous siblings to Earth, bud.”

Thor looked sheepish.  “Yes, that’s….probably going to become more relevant than you think.”  He glanced up at the sky, eye dimming.  “Though… perhaps not.”

Tony figured there was something going on there, but he never got to find out what it was because FRIDAY’s proximity alert suddenly went crazy.

“Here she comes again!  And she brought Cujo!”

“Do not worry,” grinned Thor.   _"I_ brought back up.”

An unholy roar Tony almost mistook for thunder heralded the arrival of a big green missile coming down from the sky to punch Fenris right in the nose, flinging Hela off his back.

“Yes!” Tony shouted.  He couldn’t believe it.  It was _Bruce._ Well, it was the Hulk with a goey Brucey center, but still.  This was turning out to be simultaneously the best and worst day Tony had had in years.

Belatedly, Tony noticed the woman clinging onto the Hulk’s back.  She was almost definitely Asgardian.  Not just because of her cape and armor, but because of the way she leapt off the Hulk and held Fenris back by the tail, keeping him from going to the aid of his master.

Hela, recovering mid-air, attempted to attack the woman but was stopped in her tracks by a barrage of bullets.  Tony’s sensors told him they were coming from some kind of cloaked aircraft hovering nearby.

“This is our chance!” bellowed Thor, dashing into the fray with a battle cry.

Tony followed on his heels.  Thor was right.  They had the numbers.  They could win this.  They _should_ win this.

So why did he feel so uneasy?

 

\---

 

Peter had been on his way to go bowling with Ned when he’d gotten the news alert on his phone.  Or rather, when Ned had texted him the alert with the message, “ALIENS????!” followed by a string of emojis.  Needless to say, Ned had understood when Peter had asked for a rain check on bowling.

He’d have reached the fight sooner, but he’d gotten stuck on the train forty blocks away trying to get uptown.  Peter hadn’t thought it possible, but Mr. Stark had actually broken the subway worse than it already was.  So Peter was forced to get out and websling his way to Midtown.  And as he swung from skyscraper to skyscraper, so much taller than the brick apartments in Queens, he thought to himself that he could get used to this.

Still ten blocks away, Ned’s hack finally bore fruit.

“-ela is heading south on Park,” said Mr. Stark’s voice in Peter’s ear.  “Anyone got eyes on the dog?”

“I’ve got him,” said another voice.  Peter thought it might be War Machine.  Iron Patriot.  Whatever—he was cool and Peter hoped he’d left a good impression in Germany.  “He’s chewing up that cupcake place on 42nd.”

Peter knew that cupcake place!  Switching directions, he prayed that Mr. Stark wouldn’t be too mad at him for hacking into the Avengers’ comm link.

Instinct made Peter freeze and pull himself out of the way of...something big he couldn’t see.  Then out of nowhere, a plane, which had been _invisible_ a second ago, went spinning across the sky and crashed into the building Peter was webbed to.

“Status report, invisible plane lady?  You alive?” asked Mr. Stark.

An accented voice responded irritably, “How did you get access to this channel?”

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

While Mr. Stark annoyed the woman on the other line, Peter surveyed the wreckage.  There was a sizeable hole in the side of the building, the smoking remains of the plane protruding through the first two floors.

“Where are you?” asked Mr. Stark.

The voice grunted.  There was the sound of shifting metal.  “I’m trapped in a Starbucks.”

Sure enough, the bottom floor had a Starbucks and there was a bald woman with a spear inside, surrounded by twisted metal.  Peter ought to help.

“Which one?  I’ll come get you.” asked Mr. Stark.

“The one on Lexington Avenue.”

“Gotta be more specific than that.”

“Nevermind, I can make my own way back.”  The woman held up her spear and a jolt of energy flew out the tip, blasting the debris aside.  On her way out, she grabbed an abandoned coffee cup off a table and took a sip.  Wrinkling her nose, she muttered, “So this is pumpkin spice…”

She didn’t seem like she needed Peter’s help, after all.  Not wanting her to see him and report his presence to Mr. Stark, Peter swung away.  By the time he got to the cupcake place—or what was left of it—the fight had come and gone.  Great big claw marks tore up the concrete and cars lay crumpled in the street like tin cans.

“Lost sight of him,” reported War Machine.  “Anybody see a giant wolf, call it in!”

No help on that end, then.  Peter would have to track the monster down his own way.

There was a part of Peter, a sixth sense, that always told him where the danger was.  Normally, he listened to it and it kept him safe.  But this time he went in the direction it told him not to go, tracing the feeling back to its source.  

It didn’t take long for him to find the dog.  Or, rather, for the dog to find him.

“Whoah!” Peter swung out of reach of its snapping jaws just in time.  He tried to web up its feet, but it broke through the white strings before Peter could layer it up.  

So it wasn’t just big, it was strong.  And fast. And had really, really sharp teeth.  Good to know.

 _Well_ , he thought as he narrowly avoided another gruesome death.  _It’s time to face the music._

“Hey, Spider-Man here,” Peter announced into his comms.  “I, uh, got eyes on the big...dog...thing.”

There was a profound silence, and then: “Parker?!  What the hell?!”

Peter winced.  “Hi, Mr. Stark.  So I was just in the neighborhood and-“

“No.  No, you weren’t.  Because I _closed down_ the neighborhood.  What do you think you’re-”

“Can we talk about this later, sir?  It’s just, I kinda gotta deal with this dog situation—oof!”

Peter grunted as the dog smacked him with its paw, sending him crashing head-first into a bookstore down the block.  Groaning, Peter caught himself before he slid off the building’s side.  His danger sense (he needed a better name for that) had him looking up in time to see the dog leaping toward him, jaws open and ready to turn Peter into kibble.

Peter grabbed the nearest thing—part of the store’s sign, a steel letter S bigger than he was—wrenched it free and swung it.  It hit the wolf square on the jaw.  As it fell back to the street, shaking its head and snorting, Peter took his chance and webbed its eyes.  This time, the webbing held and the wolf went mad, howling and blindly scratching at its own face.

Mr. Stark was shouting in his ear, “-eter!  Peter! Are you okay? What’s happening?”

“I’m fine,” said Peter, ducking into a sandwich shop downstairs to avoid the wolf’s swiping claws.  It could still smell and hear him, but it’s body was too big to fit inside the doors.  “I’ve got an idea.  Can anyone meet me? I’m at 45th and Lex.”

“I’m on my way-”

“No, Tony,” said War Machine.  “You stay on Hela.  I’ll get the kid.”

“...Fine,” Mr. Stark grumbled.  “But you better bring him back mint condition.”

The sound of repulsors signaled the arrival of the War Machine.  Peter shot out of the sandwich shop and webbed himself up high, just out of the dog’s reach.

“Over here!  Hey! War Machine—sir—I mean—Colonel-“

War Machine swooped in to fly alongside Peter as he swung down the block, the wolf following below.  “Kid, just get out of here. Let the adults handle this.”

“Yeah I know, I know--but I have a plan.  If we can lure it into the Park Avenue Tunnel, we can force it into close quarters.  Use its size against it.  Without space to move around-“

“He’ll be trapped,” finished War Machine.  “Not bad, Spider-Man.  You get all that, Viz?”

A new voice, British, answered over the comms.  “I’ll meet you in the tunnel.”

War Machine pointed at Peter.  “Tony’s gonna kill me, but Fenris is locked onto your scent and we need all hands on deck.  You good to run point?”

Peter tried to sound cool and professional when he answered, “Yeah, totally, no problem, yeah, yes, I can do that.”

There was a smile in War Machine’s voice when he tipped his head and said, “After you.”

 

\---

 

Loki watched the battle rage on from his rain-slick window ledge, shivering and soaked down to his hollow bones.  Even from twenty stories up, it was clear that it was hopeless.  The speck that was his brother brought lightning down onto the speck that was his sister, and the Iron Man fired another one of his beams.  Again and again.  No matter what they did, Hela kept coming.

She was far stronger even than she’d been on Asgard.  Loki cursed Thor once more for dragging them all back into this nightmare.  They should have kept running.  It was too late for that now.

But not for Loki.  Loki thought about where he might go.  Wakanda, to flee with Asgard?  Or stay and make a life here disguised as some politician or king, raining mayhem down on what was left of the Earth after Hela had done with it.  It could be a fun way to pass the next few decades.

Loki considered it while he watched Stark advance with some sort of laser canon.  The laser carved up the sidewalk, but Hela shielded herself with her black cape.  When Stark flew in to get past her guard, her slender hand shot out and grabbed his ankle.  She threw him into Thor and they both went careening into a restaurant and out the other side.  Iron Man’s laser went wide and sliced a burning line into every building on the opposite street, including Loki’s.  Loki leapt into the sky and smoke and let the wind take him downward.

Below, the battle had ground to a halt and, step by step, Hela cut a path towards Thor’s fallen body.  Thor, too stunned to move, lay beneath a chunk of concrete, his allies nowhere to be seen.

And there went Loki’s plans.

Loki cursed the entire Odin family line and landed in the middle of the destroyed avenue, Aesir feet once more touching ground.

“Hello, sister,” he called.

Hela stopped.  Turned.  When she saw him, her eyes narrowed in recognition.  “Oh goodie. It’s the other one.”  A blade appeared between her fingers, a snarl on her lips.  “While I’ve got you here, allow me to finally _thank_ you for stealing away my subjects on your ship.”

“You’re welcome,” replied Loki graciously, not bothering to mention that it hadn’t even been _his_ ship, nor had they been _her_ subjects.  “I don’t believe we were ever properly introduced.”  Loki inclined his head in the customary gesture of respect between two royals of equal standing.  “I am Loki of Asgard. God of Mischief.”

Hela raised an eyebrow.  She didn’t bow back.

Smiling, Loki spread out his empty hands in surrender.  “I’m aware that my title casts doubt upon every word I say, but I assure you, sister, I’m not here for a fight.”  He gave a self-deprecating chuckle.  “After all, I’m no warrior and only an idiot would dare pick a fight with you.”

Now she raised both eyebrows.  “Are you calling our brother an idiot?”

Loki rolled his eyes.  “I have been doing nothing but for twelve centuries.”

Hela snorted in disgust.  “I’d forgotten how _young_ you both were.”  She twirled the dagger in her fingers, slowly pacing toward him, considering.  “You helped him before.  You fought my army.”

“I did what I thought was my duty at the time,” Loki shrugged.  “Call it a lapse of judgement.  I see now who holds the real power in our family.  And I only wish to be of use.”

Disbelief dripped from her voice.  “Really? You’d betray your own brother.  Just stand aside and watch me kill him?”

Loki laughed and it seemed to startle her.  He tried to recall the malice that had coursed through him the last time he’d stood in this city and hoped it showed in his eyes.  “I have been trying to kill Thor for _years,”_ he seethed.  “I’d have conquered this planet myself if Thor hadn’t gotten his fat head in my way.  Ask any of these Earthlings, they’ll tell you.”

“Hm,” Hela hummed, eyes darting to the fallen building.  Perhaps the humans _had_ mentioned him.  

“To be honest,” he added conspiratorially, “this place was hardly worth the effort.  I mean--look at the architecture.  Ghastly.  Nothing like home.”

Hela glanced at the smoking buildings around them.  “It’s better than Jotenheim.”

“Ah, so you’ve seen my work,” said Loki, infusing his voice with pride.

“That was you?” asked Hela, impressed despite herself.  The knife stopped twirling.  “How did you do it?"

“I opened the Bifrost.  And left it open,” Loki bragged, though his gut churned.

Hela’s eyes widened a fraction.  “How diabolical.”  She smiled.  “I shall have to try that.  It does take the fun out of war, though.”

“You can’t use the Bifrost without the sword,” Loki reminded her.  “I can get it for you.”

She stared at him, her eyes gleaming as she tapped the blade of her knife against her lips.  “Say I do believe you. Why else should I keep you around?”

“Well, if you’re going to invade Earth, you might want a guide.”

“Perhaps I do.”  The knife disappeared and Hela placed her hands on her hips.  “Are you offering?”

Loki let a sinister grin spread across his face.  “I know a good opportunity when I see one.”

Then Loki threw his dagger, aiming for her eye.

Her hand flew up to intercept it and Loki’s uru blade pierced through the palm, cutting Hela on the cheek.  She pulled it out of her hand with a squelch and smiled, but there was no humor in it.

“You.  Little.   _Liar_.  You really do take after dad.”

Loki took a step back, heart racing.  “Now that’s just uncalled for.”

“You know,” Hela drawled, conjuring a spear.  “We’re a lot alike, you and I.  I really do feel as if you could be my brother.  It’s almost a shame I have to kill you.  Truly, a shame.  But…”  She shrugged.  “Oh well.”  And threw the spear.

Loki’s illusion dissipated when the spear tore through it.  In the same moment, lightning struck and repulsors flared and Hela was blasted back five blocks until she hit the prominent train station at the foot of Stark’s tower, demolishing the front wall as she crashed into it like a missile.

“Let’s push our advantage!” said Stark, flying in after her.

Dropping his invisibility, the real Loki sprinted for the station.  And at his side was Thor, beaming like the sun.

 

\---

 

Peter ran as fast as his feet could carry him through the abandoned tunnel and didn’t dare look over his shoulder at Fenris, hot on his heels.

“We’re gonna run out of tunnel soon!” Peter shouted, unnecessarily since the comms would carry his voice to the others.  “Where’s your backup?!”

“They’re coming,” said War Machine.  “In the meantime, we need to slow it down before it gets back on the streets.”

“Got it.”  Peter turned and shot webs at the hound’s feet, this time adding extra layers.  Fenris furiously tugged his paws, trying to unstick them from the ground, while War Machine flew up behind him.  Two cords shot out of the suit, nodes attaching to Fenris’ neck.  Electricity surged down the lines and Fenris convulsed, howling.  Peter almost felt sorry for it.

The feeling didn’t last because Fenris quickly shook off both the tasers and Peter’s webbing, leaving behind large chunks of bloody fur.  The beast, fully enraged now and frothing at the mouth, took down War Machine with a blind swipe of its paw, rounding on Peter next.

“Nice puppy,” Peter said slowly, backing away.  “Nice man-eating nightmare puppy.”

The wolf lunged and Peter’s reflexes were just quick enough to keep him from becoming lunch.  He turned and ran.  But as he pelted down the echoing tunnel, he could hear something up ahead.  Heavy footsteps.  Something big and headed towards them.

“Oh come on,” he panted, firing webs haphazardly over his shoulder, hoping to hit something.  “One monster wasn’t enough?”

Switching gears, Peter webbed himself upward and kicked off of the ceiling, shooting back toward the wolf with his fists out.

_WHAM._

He hammered his fists into Fenris’ snout and the dog’s head snapped away from the impact.  Peter pulled its nose back with a web and kicked it with all his might.  Fenris let out a painful whine but recovered quickly, and this time Peter was too close to avoid its snapping jaws.  Just before they chomped down, he caught the top and bottom with his hands, holding them apart with every last ounce of his strength.

Crying out, he tried to keep the jaws open but it was a losing battle.  His arms shook, rancid drool dripped onto his face, and behind him he could hear booming footsteps.  A roar.  The hair stood up on the back of Peter’s neck.

Whatever had been coming down the tunnel was here.

There was an animal growl behind Peter.  Then something green barreled past and suddenly the jaws were gone, Peter’s hands free.  Stumbling forward, Peter couldn’t believe his eyes.  Several yards ahead, Fenris was being pummeled by the Hulk.  

The Hulk was back!  _That_ hadn’t been on the news.

As Peter gaped, a woman in white armor sprinted past him, brandishing a blue sword.  Shouting a battle cry, she kicked the wolf in the chin and it reared, smacking its own head into the ceiling.

“I should help,” mumbled Peter, and he swung in to deliver a few kicks of his own, shooting web after web, trying to slow the monster down.

Eventually, Fenris stumbled into the side of the tunnel, so big its pointed ears bent against the ceiling.  It tried to lunge at Peter, but missed and crashed face-first into the opposite wall, still blinded by webbing.

The woman spun her sword.  “I think I can kill it,” she said.  “But its magic is too strong.  I need someone to weaken it first.”

“I believe I can help with that.”

Mr. Stark’s android, Vision, came floating down the tunnel.  Without further ado, he fired his forehead beam, striking Fenris between the eyes.  Fenris roared, trying to get away, but there was no space for him to run.  Peter layered web upon web on the animal’s body, cocooning it until it couldn’t move.  It howled its rage, the sound unnatural and haunting and echoing all around the close space.

Then the woman, with a wide sweep of her blade, cut the wolf’s head clean off.  It rolled twice when it hit the ground, only stopping because it ran out of room.  It was bigger than a car.

Peter could see all the...inside parts.  He suppressed a powerful urge to gag.

“Good riddance,” the woman said, spitting on the ground.  The Hulk huffed, looking distinctly pleased with himself.  “Hey, where are you going?”

But Vision was already leaving the tunnel.  On his way out, he passed War Machine, who limped back to the others and told them, “He said he was needed elsewhere.  Nice work with the dog, by the way.  Let’s clear up the body before the army gets here.”

 

\---

 

The interior of Grand Central Terminal was a war zone, its marble floor strewn with dust and debris, its ceiling half crumbled.  Loki sprinted down a once grand staircase in a desperate attempt to avoid Hela’s flying blades.

A stray projectile slipped past Loki’s guard, slicing into his thigh.  He stumbled and saw the next volley of weapons too late to dodge it.  Before he could be skewered, a beam of energy blasted the knives off course.  Stark grabbed Loki by the arm and hauled him behind a large bit of fallen ceiling.  Thor ran to join them behind their shelter and was followed by the sound of several blades embedding themselves on the other side of the rubble.

“You can’t run forever!” Hela sang.

Thor gripped Loki by the shoulder.  “You’re injured.”

Loki shook off the appendage.  He needed to focus on his seidr and not bleeding out.  “It’s fine.  Just a scratch.”

Stark looked between them and said sharply, “Sorry, are we having a devil you know thing?  Is that what’s happening now?”

Loki tried to smile but it was more of a grimace.  “Oh, the irony of the situation is not lost on me, I assure you.”

One of Hela’s blades pierced through their shelter and nearly took Thor’s head off.

Thor dragged Loki to a safer spot and Stark followed, pausing to pop out and shoot several missiles at their enemy.  Going by Hela’s distant, derisive laughter, they were ineffective.

“We’ve no time for this,” grumbled Thor.  “Just trust me when I say Loki is on our side.”

Stark pointed at him.  “This conversation isn’t over, mister.”  Hela fired another barrage of knives and Stark made a strangled sound of frustration.  “Fine!  Thor, you flank her.   _Loki_ \--I can’t believe I’m saying this--you take her right and-“

“No,” Loki interrupted, wincing as his wound knit itself back together.  “Direct attacks will not work.  She’s too fast.”

Stark threw his hands up, “No shit, but she doesn’t have any openings.  The best we can do is brute force it and hope we get lucky.”

Loki shook his head.  “She is still weakened from your earlier assault.”

“How can you tell?” asked Thor.

“It’s her magic,” Loki explained.  “She’s regenerating more slowly.  Keeping her distance.  She’s reserving her seidr for healing, like I am now.”

Stark nodded.  “This is our chance.  Well, Rudolph, what do you suggest?”

Loki thought about it, chancing a glance over their pile of debris and nearly catching a face full of pointy metal for it.  As he glimpsed her, an idea struck him.  “Her hands.  That’s how she casts.  In order to conjure, she must make the gesture first.”

“So we stop her from using her hands and she’s got nothing,” Stark nodded.  “Okay, here’s what we do…”

 

\---

 

“Isn’t this tedious?” Hela called out, pacing the center of the destroyed hall, eyes flicking lazily over the rubble.  “All this running about.  Working up a sweat.  Why not simply surrender yourselves to me?  Do so and your deaths will be swift and mostly painless.  I promise.”

“My friends did not surrender,” said Thor, stepping into the open.  “They died nobly.  Protecting Asgard from your tyranny.”

Hela smirked cruelly.  “They died like dogs, whining for their master, but he never came to save them-”

Roaring with rage, Thor threw himself at his sister, lightning flowing around him like a coat.  Surprised at this wild attack, Hela danced out of the way of his swinging fists.

“Really, brother, this is undignified,” she said.

Thor only kept coming, picking up a discarded sword and engaging Hela in combat.  As their weapons locked, Loki leapt out of the shadows, daggers drawn.  Hela snapped around like a whip, in one movement parrying Loki’s blow and returning one of Thor’s.  Thor stumbled back and Hela turned on Loki, who called upon thirty doubles of himself.  His simulacra surrounded Hela, all grinning with murderous intent.

She cocked a brow.  “Cute.”  And firing knives in all directions, took out each one.  The real Loki knocked away a knife before it could bury itself in his heart, but then Hela was in front of him, her hand around his throat.

Thor came up behind her and brought his sword down.  She caught his wrist with her free hand without even looking.  Chuckling, she lifted Loki until his toes left the ground.

“Oh dear,” she sneered.  “Whatever will you do now, my dearest baby brothers?”

 _This_ , thought Loki and he slapped Stark’s device onto the hand choking him.  He saw Thor do the same with the other one.  Immediately, the tiny bots in Stark’s creations grew their red metal around Hela’s fingers, forming the egg-like cuffs.

“What is this?” Hela jerked her hands away from them, dropping Loki to the floor.  The cuffs, fully encasing both hands, glowed and pulled toward each other like magnets.  Hela fought it for a moment, but the cuffs would not remain separate a second longer and fused together with a clang.  Hands bound and furious, she advanced on the brothers.

Stark flew in and fired two more cuffs, one for each leg.  Hela kicked one out of the sky, but the other encased her left foot and clamped it to the ground.  She was stuck.  Tossing her hair out of her face, she glared at them all with burning eyes.

“You think this can hold me?”

“Not really,” said Stark.  “Which is why we’re doing this.”

He fired his canon.  Thor brought down the lightning at the same time.  Hela screamed, as much in pain as in outrage.  Loki counted the seconds it took for her to regenerate as they sustained their attack.  Her healing was slowing, but not enough.  They needed more power.

Suddenly, a third beam joined the rest, emanating from the forehead of a newcomer flying in through the hole in the ceiling.  A man?  No.  A monstrosity.  It was...a pink robot.  With an _Infinity Stone_ in its head.  Oh blessed Norns, Thor hadn’t been joking.

Unable to process this new development, Loki tore his eyes away from the...thing and watched Hela’s skin blister and burn, her screams growing in intensity.  It was working.  Loki dared to hope, to think that this nightmare would finally be over.  But then his eyes glanced down and he saw the crack forming in the cuffs.

He tried to shout out a warning, but it was too late.  He threw his daggers in desperation.

The cuffs broke apart.  But his daggers hit home.  One in the heart, the other in her eye.  Blood gushed down her face grotesquely.

Loki’s heart stopped.  Had he done it?  Had he just…?

But she wasn’t falling.  Hela barely even flinched, had not made a move to block such an obvious attack.  Instead she was smiling, her remaining eye fixed on the Mind Stone.

And in her hands, she held the Tesseract.

Hela twisted the device around the cube and Loki’s daggers flew out of her body and into Thor and Stark, who both fell.  Loki didn’t have time to fear for his brother’s life because a more pressing terror was unfolding before him as Hela turned her full attention to the robot.

Before the creature could fire another of its beams, Hela conjured a spear, extending it up and up, point searching for the thing’s heart.  The Mind Stone glowed and its bearer became intangible, letting the weapon pass harmlessly through its ghost-like form.

But Hela wore a bloody grin and the Tesseract shone bright in her hand.  

The robot’s vibrant face contorted in confusion and pain as a blue light engulfed it and its form solidified, impaled upon Hela’s spear.  It scrabbled at the weapon protruding from its chest, but its strength was quickly waning, hands going limp.  With a horrible scraping sound, gravity began to bring its metal body down the length of the shaft toward the woman who wielded it while Loki watched on in horror.

Smiling triumphantly, Hela reached out a hand to touch the stone.

“No!” a voice cried and a smaller spear, silver and red, flew in to embed itself in Hela’s shoulder.  It was followed by General Okoye.  She used the leverage of her weapon to force Hela to let go of the robot, who crashed to the ground in a heap.  

Snatching up a handful of dust, Loki held it in front of his mouth and blew.  

And the whole station became filled with thick clouds of dust.

Loki could hear but not see Okoye and Hela fighting nearby.  Further sounds told him Stark and Thor had joined in.  Loki didn’t have much time.  He hurried to where the robot had fallen and found it using its laser to cut the metal sticking out of its torso, painfully yanking pieces of spear out of its own body.  

It tensed when he crouched beside it, recognition flashing in its strange eyes.  “It’s you…”

Loki huffed.  “Oh honestly!  You weren’t even _there_ the last time.”

The robot struggled to get upright.  Impatiently, Loki grabbed its arm and pulled it to its feet.  It stared at him with naked confusion.

“Go,” he urged it.  “I will mislead her.”  And Loki shifted, taking the form of the being in front of him.  He then placed a palm on its destroyed chest and let his seidr flow over and around it like water.  “I have shielded you from all eyes except mine.  But it won’t last if my strength gives out.  Get as far away from here as possible before then.”

The robot stared at him strangely for a long, infuriating moment.  Finally, it inclined its head and said, “Thank you.”  Eyes lingering on Loki, it limped away into the dust and Loki breathed a sigh of relief.

This relief was short lived, however, because Hela soon came bursting into view.  

Loki ran.  He led Hela on a merry chase for a scant few minutes before she caught up.  Loki’s cover of dust was already dissipating, his seidr stretched to its limits, and Hela spotted him easily now, absurdly colored as his current form was.

But the improved visibility meant that his allies could find him, too.  Stark tried to intercept her, but none of his shots made contact.  The General was already down, lying in a pool of her own blood.  Loki hoped she was still alive, he’d liked her.

Thor shot another lightning blast at Hela, but she was ready for it this time.  Jumping into the air, she grew a metal beam out of her arm and struck Stark’s suit with it.  The electricity flowed along Hela’s weapon and into Stark, who convulsed and was blasted into the ceiling.  Large chunks of marble began to rain down and Thor hurried to shield Okoye from being crushed.

Hela turned on Loki, who surreptitiously dropped the disk he’d pilfered from Stark into his curled fingers.

She looked monstrous with her fraying hair and her deflated eyeball slowly reforming in a bloody socket.  “Now I have you, you…”  Her eye widened, flicking up at the fake stone in Loki’s forehead.  “No,” she whispered.

Loki smirked, “Made you look.”

And he threw the disk.  The resulting explosion blew him back into the rubble, ears ringing, form shifting back to normal as his seidr rushed to heal his wounds.

He had only enough time to think, _Ow,_ before the rest of the ceiling came down.

 

\---

 

Hela irritably stalked out of the debris.  What a monumental waste of time.  The Infinity Stone had vanished and now she couldn’t even find her blasted brothers underneath the wreckage.  With any luck, the collapse had killed them.  She somehow doubted it, though.  She suspected they would come crawling back to defy her, like the cockroaches they were.

But Hela had neither the time nor the patience to deal with them now.  If she couldn’t have the stone, at the very least she could retrieve the Bifrost sword.  If Thor was here, Heimdall couldn’t be far behind.  She would find it, even if she had to lay waste to this entire planet to do so.

She walked until she came upon the remains of the invisible flying ship.  Climbing aboard, it took her a moment to figure out the controls, but soon she found a map.  And a name.  Wakanda.

Stepping back onto the street, she was greeted by a welcome sight.  Humans.  A lot of them, too.  Dressed in green and black and aiming primitive looking guns at her while a fleet of tanks sat behind them.  

So this was Midgard’s army.  How adorable.

“By the power of the United States military, you are under arrest,” said a man with a speakerphone and a lot of nerve.  “Surrender now or we will shoot.”

Hela did not surrender.  Several minutes later, she stood upon a flaming tank and surveyed the carnage, trying to quell her disappointment.  The humans had hardly been a challenge at all.  They died so easily and their machines might as well have been paper mache.  No fun at all.

“You killed them all,” sobbed a straggler, face smeared with the blood of his fellows.  “You killed them!  Monster!”

Sighing, Hela summoned a dagger.  “Oh, quit your sniveling.”

“M-monster…” the soldier grit his teeth and raised his useless weapon.  “I’ll kill you!”

With a roll of her eyes, Hela let the dagger fly without looking.  But instead of a wet squelch, she heard the clang of metal on metal.  Turning, she saw the Valkyrie standing above the weeping soldier, Dragonfang in hand.

Hela scowled.  “Another cockroach.”

“Get out of here,” Valkyrie said to the mortal.  When he stayed frozen, she bellowed, “Now!”  He scrambled to his feet and ran out of sight.  The Valkyrie glared at Hela, ancient pain swimming in her brown eyes.  “Today is the day I will finally avenge her.”

“I remember you now,” said Hela, eyes widening with delight.  “Ah yes, the one that got away.  Brunhilde, was it?”

Brunhilde’s fingers tightened around the hilt of her sword.

Hela continued, “And your Captain, the one who saved your worthless life in the end.  The Lady Sigrun?”

 _“Don’t_ say her name!” Brunhilde snarled.

“I always cautioned her that her soft heart would be the death of her,” Hela shook her head.  “And in the end, I was right.  I drove my blade through that soft heart of hers and it killed her.”

Brunhilde screamed and charged.  She was faster than the others and no less powerful.  But she was blinded by her anger and all alone, so Hela had no trouble keeping her at bay.  She stayed clear of Dragonfang, though.  With Mjolnir destroyed and Gungnir safe at the palace, it was one of the few weapons left imbued with enough power to kill her.

After a few fierce bouts, Hela had her on her knees.  Blood oozed from a cut across her cheek and her eyes burned like coals.  Dragonfang lay far out of reach.  Hela was about to deliver the final blow when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.

Coming out of a tunnel in the middle of the street was the flying man in the gray armor from earlier and a short, shirtless human running barefoot below him.  And following behind was another figure, dressed head to toe in red and blue, and dragging a large object wrapped in some sort of enormous spider web.  When Hela realized what it was, she saw red.

She kicked Brunhilde in the face, knocking her out, and with a few great leaps, was beside Fenris’ body in moments.  The armored man and the spider human started forward at her arrival, but she dispatched them with a few careless blows.  The shirtless man panicked, but she ignored him.  She only had eyes for Fenris.

Her poor darling.  She pet his severed head, her heart crying out in outrage.  They would all pay for this, she swore.  All of Earth would rue this day.

But first, she would fix it.  After all, she was the Goddess of Death.  And Fenris hadn’t really been alive.

Summoning the power returned to her by her months on Asgard, she lay her hand on Fenris’ still heart.  Green fire flowed out from her fingers until it engulfed the wolf entirely.  For this much, at least, she wouldn’t need the Eternal Flame.  But it would cost her.

As the green hellfire did its work, burning Fenris to bones and remaking him anew, she turned her rage onto the human nearest her.  The spider.

 _“You dare,”_ she snarled, grabbing him by the throat and tossing him into the nearest building.  “You dare lay hands on my Fenris?!”

The spiderling pushed himself to his knees, arm curling around his torso.

Hela kicked him and heard a crack.

“You, a mere insect!”

“Arachnid, actually,” coughed the boy, bringing up a shaking hand.  Webs shot out of his wrist, but Hela dodged easily, grabbing that wrist and twisting it.  He cried out and Hela pressed her heel against his throat.

“It is not enough to kill you,” she decided.  “You or your companions.  You’re not afraid to die in battle, are you?  No, you fear the deaths of those you’ve failed to protect.”

Hela dropped the boy, and he crumpled to the ground in pain.  A street away, figures were emerging from the remains of the train station--her brothers and their friends, no doubt.  Good.  Let them see.

Pulling from every last reserve of magic in her soul, she called to the metal below the earth’s surface.  Once, she could only do this on Asgard. But her power had grown now, and she felt the metal respond to her command.  With a shout, she raised her hands and great black spikes erupted from the streets and grew into the skyscrapers above.  Glass shattered, steel groaned, and the buildings began to fall.

The spider boy made a sound of abject horror and Hela was satisfied.  She walked back to Fenris’ smoldering body, already almost as good as new, and lifted the Tesseract.  Neither of them were in any shape to fight now.  But Asgard would restore them, and then they would be back for the sword.  And Earth would feel her fury.

In a flash of blue light, she was gone.

 

\---

 

Jessica prayed to a God she didn’t believe in as she watched the Oscorp building tilt onto Park Avenue.  Two others had already fallen and, if Matt was to be believed (and he usually was), they hadn’t been completely empty.  The Oscorp building, too, hadn’t been fully evacuated.  She, Matt and Luke had tried to get as many people out of the area as possible, but according to Matt, there were dozens of Oscorp scientists refusing to leave some kind of hidden lab.  And now they were going to die, along with any idiots on Park Avenue who hadn’t already run for their lives (i.e. Jessica).

The two Iron Guys were trying to hold up the building, thrusters on full blast.  Spider-Man, looking pretty beat up, had covered it in webs and was trying to pull it back on its other side.  But the tower was buckling under its own weight and it was only a matter of time before it came crashing down.

Jessica had a thought.  “Hey, remember what we did to Midland Circle?”

Matt nodded.  “You think they should demolish the building with controlled explosions.”

“But with none of us under it this time.”  Anyone inside would still be screwed, but it would be better than it falling sideways and killing them all.  “How do we let them know?”

Matt tilted his head and ran toward Grand Central, or as Jessica now liked to think of it, the Death Zone.  Cursing, she followed him.  Standing at the foot of the disaster was Thor, supporting a bald black woman who was conscious but heavily bleeding.  Matt asked for her communicator and she, though dazed and suspicious, gave it to him begrudgingly.

“Iron Man, this is Daredevil,” he said, holding the thing up to his ear.  “I have a plan.”

Jessica leaned in close to listen as Matt explained what they needed to do to bring the building safely down.  Stark muttered something about using his AI to find points of weakness and agreed to the plan.

“Wait!” said Matt.  “There’s still people inside.  We have to try and get them out.”

Stark made a noise of assent.  “You heard that, Spider-Man?  Hop to it.  I can give you five more minutes before it all goes boom.”

Jessica watched the Spider-Man crash into a window of the building, Thor leaping up several stories to help.  They looked for people while Matt gave directions on the communicator.  The five minutes ticked by quickly and it was then that Jessica noticed Luke was missing.  He’d gone to help ages ago, but hadn’t said where he was going.

“Where’s Luke?” she said slowly.

Matt head snapped up toward the falling tower.  “Oh no…”

“What floor is he on?”  Jessica took several steps back, staring at the expanse of metal and glass overhead.  

“The nineteenth,” Matt said, then turned to her sharply.  “Jessica, you’re not going to-”

But Jessica was already jumping.  She jumped higher and farther than she’d ever jumped before and counted the floors.  Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen...twenty, twenty-one.  Oops.  As her arc brought her lower and the window of the twenty-second floor came rushing to meet her, she punched through the glass and crashed onto an office floor.  It took her a moment to gain her balance as the room continued to tilt, but she didn’t pause, sprinting into the hall, making a beeline for the stairs.

Twenty-first floor.  Twentieth.  Nineteenth.  It was way past the five minute mark, but Matt must have said something to Stark because there was no boom.  The building did continue to tilt dangerously, however and she was running out of time.

The nineteenth floor’s door was locked.  Jessica kicked it in and found herself in a lab.  “Luke!” she shouted.  “Luke!  Where are you?!”

“Jess…” a weak voice called out and Jessica ran towards it.

Turning a corner, she saw Luke sagged against a wall, a teenage boy staring at him in fear.

“Oh shit--are you-” the boy stammered.

Jessica hurried to support Luke, asking, “What happened?  Are you hurt?”

“Kid hit me with some green gas,” he wheezed.  “I can’t…”

He passed out.  Jessica caught him before he hit the floor.  She glared at the kid, who blanched.

“Look, he surprised me and I reacted.  I never meant-”

The building lurched and the three of them stumbled.  The floor tilted steeply and Jessica had to fight not to go sliding.  The kid clutched the wall, pale as a sheet.

“What’s your name?” asked Jessica.

He turned wide eyes on her.  “Harry.”

“Okay, Harry, I’m gonna get you out of here.  But you gotta trust me.”

Swallowing, the kid followed Jessica as she raced to the nearest window, carrying Luke in her arms.  She kicked the glass and it shattered.  At that moment, several explosions went off far below.  Outside, the skyline rose as the building went down.

“Climb on my back!” she shouted and Harry hurried to obey.

Jessica closed her eyes and leapt.

And she didn’t fall.

New York City swam beneath her feet, and the kid gasped in her ear.  Behind her, the building collapsed in a cloud of dust.

Iron Man hovered up beside her and heaved an enormous sigh.  “Jesus, you had me worried for nothing.  I didn’t know you could fly.”

“Neither did I,” said Jessica weakly.

Now all she had to do was figure out how to get down.

 

\---

 

After Loki finally escaped from the rubble, he set about searching for the Royal Talon Fighter.  He had to warn Heimdall.

But when he got there, he saw the map projected over the console and a horrible thought occurred to him.

Slapping a hand over the controls, he barked, “Heimdall?  Heimdall are you there?  Hela is coming!  Do you hear me?”

“We hear you,” came the voice of Princess Shuri.  “And you’re too late.  She’s already here.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was only a day late this time! Progress!
> 
> I hope this chapter didn't drag too much. Thankfully, there's going to be a little lull in the fighting while our heroes regroup in the next chapter which, hopefully, will be up sometime in the next two weeks.
> 
> A fun Easter egg in this chapter: the "book store" on 45th and Lexington that Peter crashes into is actually Midtown Comics IRL, and the big 'S' is the Superman symbol they have on the outside of the building. That place is just a few blocks away from where the first Avengers was set and I had to include it somehow.


End file.
